Author's Note: Here is a new story, as it stands so far, that
isn't actually new. I wrote it months, ago, but it's taken me this long to
think up a decent name that wasn't gonna make me nauseous. I'd suggest you
don't take it too seriously... But you know what my writing is like. Of
course tragedy will be involved. This was originally supposed to be a
simple 'love' story. The next thing I know, I'm writing hostage crisis...
*sigh* I can't do fluffies.
This story that inspired it was one that April Richards, I think, started,
and Ranko continued on. I just took one tiny aspect of their tale, and
expanded on it. I'll let the story tell itself.

Kim's smile faded. Tommy didn't seem to realise it, but he had left one of
their number out. Jason... She felt a touch of pain as she recalled his
confession earlier that day, about his feelings for Trini, and the look of
abject misery in his eyes at the belief that he'd lost his chance with her.
"Tommy, I don't think all of us are happy."

Tommy looked down at her in surprise. "What d'you mean?"

"It's Jason." She hesitated, then told him what she'd found out.

Tommy listened, then moaned softly.

"Man, I never knew he felt that way. He sure knows how to keep it hidden."

Kim looked upset. "Maybe that, or none of us ever bother to take a closer
look. When he told me today... Tommy, I think he's really hurting."

Tommy gazed up at the stars. "I never thought Jase had an interest in any
girl, let alone Trini. I... Man, I guess we've all been pretty blind to
him."

He paused then hugged Kim closer to him. "Well, there's not much we can do,
now. Let's just enjoy the rest of the night, okay? I'll talk to Jase
tomorrow."

The Next Day ...
Valentines' Day was over, but the excitement was still there, and everyone
arrived at school the next day chattering excitedly about their dates. In
the excitement, Tommy and Kim both forgot about Jason, and talked about
nothing but their night together along with everyone else. Everyone, it
seemed, had a story to tell. Everybody, that was, but one person.

Jason sat on the outer limit of the circle of friends, listening
half-heartedly to the stories. Even Zack, who claimed to be the master of
disaster where women were concerned, was bubbling over with excitement
about his date.

The Red Ranger sighed inwardly. If he hadn't had any interest in any one
girl, it would have made no difference to him. As it was, the one girl he
honestly liked was out of his reach, maybe for good. A wave of misery
filled him. It wasn't fair. No girl had ever taken him seriously before,
and the first girl to look at him as more than just a school jock had been
snatched away from him.

He was feeling worse by the minute, but any humour he'd had left was
crushed when Richie strode up, his arm protectively around Trini's waist.
Zack whistled loudly.

"Hey, it's the lovebirds! How's it going, guys?"

Richie grinned, and responded by kissing Trini squarely on the mouth,
drawing wolf whistles from the others.

It was too much for Jason to bear. Biting back the pain that clenched his
heart, he got up and hurried away, shoulders slumped and head down.

Only Kim saw him go, and she felt her stomach turn over. They had forgotten
Jason again Seeing Tommy was completely pre-occupied, she got up and
hurried after the boy who had been her best friend for so long.

* * *

Like a wounded animal, Jason went straight to the one place that he felt
safest. Once out of sight, he teleported to the Command Centre.

"Jason!" Zordon exclaimed, surprised by the boy's appearance. "Shouldn't
you be in school?"

"Yeah," Jason admitted softly. "I... I just needed to get away. Is it okay
if I stay here for a while, Zordon? Please?"

Zordon felt a touch of concern. There was definitely something wrong.

"Yes, Jason, of course. Is there anything you need to talk about?"

"No," Jason mumbled. "I just wanted to be alone."

Zordon watched as Jason trudged over to the far side of the Command Centre
and slid to miserably to the floor, where he sat in silence, knees drawn up
to his chest.

* * *

Kim arrived in the Command Centre not long after Jason. She had seen the
red streak of his teleportation light, and decided to leave school to
follow him. Upon her arrival in the Command Centre, Alpha pointed
soundlessly to Jason. Swallowing hard, Kim went over to him.

"Jason?"

Jason lifted his head a little. "Hey."

Kim sat down beside him on the floor. "Saw you leave. You really are taking
it hard, aren't you?"

The Red Ranger forced a smile onto his face. "Nah, it's okay. That's the
way it goes. Right?"

"Quit the act, Jason. I can see right through you."

The smile faded. "Sorry," he murmured. "I just... I thought I might have a
chance with Trini, and then Richie came along and it all went out the
window."

"You never know," Kim argued. "Things might not work out between them..."

"And that's why you set them up? Don't play games, Kim. I'm not stupid, as
much as everyone believes it."

Kim was stunned. "I don't think you're stupid, Jason! No one does!"

Jason looked away from her. "Yes, they do. Most of the girls in school
think I'm just another dumb jock, without any feelings."

Kim could barely believe it. Jason honestly seemed to believe that... Then,
all of a sudden, she felt something click.

"Jason, you did have a date last night, didn't you?"

Jason looked bitter. "Oh, sure. A date with the VCR and a bucket of ice
cream."

"Didn't you ask anyone out at all?"

The bitterness faded to make way for more hurt than Kim had ever seen in a
single pair of eyes. "I tried. I asked Penny Smithton, and Carla Blake.
They just laughed at me, so I didn't bother asking anyone else."

Kim felt her own heart nearly break in sympathy with Jason. "Oh, Jase I'm
sorry...." A long silence fell and then she spoke tentatively. "Do you mind
if I ask a personal question?"

"Why not?" Jason muttered miserably.

"Exactly how many dates have you had? Generally speaking...."

Jason's cheeks flushed red. "None."

"None?!"

"I had my first crush on a girl when I was fifteen," Jason told her. "It
took me a week to get up the courage to ask her out. She told me she didn't
go out with people like me. At fifteen, I didn't even know what that meant.
I tried a few times after that, but every girl I asked out either told me
she wasn't interested, or they just laughed in my face. After a while, just
gave up trying. It's why I never got around to asking Trini out. I was too
scared she'd laugh at me, and it'd wreck our friendship. I was just getting
up the nerve to try again when she started going out with Richie. Now...."
He trailed off miserably.

Kim sighed and reached across to hug him tightly.

"No wonder you're so unhappy. You know, Jase, you ought to just bite the
bullet and tell Trini how you feel. You might be surprised."

A touch of anger flickered across Jason's features. "It's easy for you!" he
burst out. "You've got Tommy, and you hardly had to try. You guys liked
each other from the moment you saw each other, and that was it. Hardly a
day after we broke the spell Rita had Tommy under, you guys got
together."

"Well, what about Zack?" Kim pointed out. "Look at how long he's been
trying to get Angela to go out with him!"

"Angela didn't already have a boyfriend. If I say or do anything now, it's
just gonna cause problems that we don't need. That's another point. I have
to think about the team. I can't do anything that would jeopardize our
teamwork. It'd be better off for the team if I just keep my mouth shut."

"Better off for the team," Kim murmured, gazing into his eyes, "but not
better off for you."

Jason got unsteadily to his feet. "I've gotta learn that what I want isn't
important. That's all there is to it. We'd better get back to school before
we get into trouble." With that, he teleported out, leaving Kim behind.

"I am afraid I cannot interfere, Kimberly," Zordon replied grimly. "This is
up to you kids to sort out."

Kim moaned. "I had a feeling you were gonna say that."

Shaking her head, she teleported out.

* * *

Over the next several days, Kim made a point of badgering Jason until he
finally agreed to talk to Trini, if only to get Kim off his back.

"Good," Kim said decisively. "It's about time."

Jason spared her a wearied look. "Maybe I just finally got sick of you
bugging me."

Kim looked crestfallen, and Jason sighed.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

"It's okay," Kim reassured him. "You've been so stressed this week that
it's not funny. You say you should keep your feelings to yourself for the
sake of the team, but maybe that's wrong. I don't think that getting
yourself all uptight is the best thing for the team."

Jason stood up. "Look, I said I'd talk to her. Okay? Just get off my back!"

Kim sighed inwardly as she watched him go, then shook her head and went to
find Tommy.

* * *

Trini had just finished her workout in the Youth Centre and she turned,
expecting to see Richie there. It was Jason, though, watching her with an
expression that was totally unreadable. She went over to him, wondering if
anything was wrong.

"Hi, Jase. What's up?"

Jason opened his mouth to speak, and for just a second, nothing came out.
Then, he got control of his vocal chords and managed to speak.

"Trini, can I talk to you?"

"Sure. What's wrong?"

"Um... Alone?"

Trini was surprised. "Okay. C'mon."

* * *

A minute later, they sat in the park under a large Oak tree.

"What's on your mind?" she asked. Jason stared intently at the ground, his
heart pounding in his chest.

Jason finally forced himself to look up at her. "I... I told Kim I'd talk
to you... She's been bugging me all week, since I told her..."

"Told her what? Jason, talk to me!"

"Trini, you've always been my best friend. You never treated me like I was
stupid...."

Trini was stunned. "What? Who thinks that?"

"No... I just wanted to say.... Damn, I can't do this..."

Trini moved around to kneel in front of the Red Ranger. "What are you
trying to tell me, Jason? Just say it. Don't be afraid."

"I... I think I'm in love with you," Jason finally stammered, not daring to
look her in the eye. Trini fell back, stunned.

"Oh... Oh, Jason I do love you as a friend, but I'm in love with Richie!
I'm sorry...."

Jason felt a painful wrench in his chest, and before he could stop them,
the tears built up and overflowed down his cheeks. So that was it. Just
friends.

Take the chance.... You might be surprised.... Kim's words echoed
meaninglessly in his head. He had not been surprised, only hurt more than
he could bear.

"Jason?"

Jason got clumsily to his feet. "I have to go. I should have been home ages
ago."

"Jason, wait!" Trini called out anxiously, but the Red Ranger didn't stop
and he didn't look back.

* * *

Donavon Scott was out the front of his family's home in Bradman Drive when
Jason came into sight. He straightened up, a frown creasing his features.
Jason was in a hurry, and he looked upset about something

"Is there something wrong, son?" he asked, only to trail off when Jason
literally flew past him into the house. Concern growing, he hurried after
his only child.

* * *

"Jason? Can I come in?"

There was no reply from within the bedroom, and Donavon took the chance and
went in. Jason lay face-down on his bed, his entire body trembling with
suppressed sobs. The older Scott went over and sat down on the edge of the
bed.

"Do you feel like talking about anything, Jason?"

Jason rolled over and looked up at his father with a face that was streaked
with tears. "It's not fair. Why can't things be the way we want them to
be?"

Donavon stared at Jason in confusion and concern. "What's happened?"

"I... I talked to Trini, Dad."

Then, Donavon understood. "Oh. And nothing came of it."

"Oh, sure," Jason said bitterly. "She loves me, as a friend."

Donavon sighed. "I'm sorry, Jason. I know how much you love her."

"It's not fair" Jason sobbed, breaking into a fresh flood of tears. After a
moment, Donavon reached out and pulled Jason close in a protective
embrace.

"Women are the hardest thing in the world to understand, and its ten times
worse when one breaks your heart. I wish I could snap my fingers and make
you forget, but it's just not that easy."

Jason didn't respond, but rather continued to cry into his fathers
shoulder.

* * *

Kim and Tommy were in the Youth Centre when Trini came in, chewing
anxiously on her lower lip. They waved her over, and then Kim spoke
excitedly. "So, how did it go?"

"He's been sulking all week," Kim protested. "He just needed some
encouragement..."

Tommy spared Kim an exasperated look, then turned back to Trini. "Didn't go
so well?"

Trini sighed. "I told him I cared about him as a friend, but I was in love
with Richie. I... I think I really hurt him!"

"What happened?" Tommy asked in concern.

"He just said he had to go home, and then he ran off. He wouldn't even look
at me."

Tommy sighed, and glowered at Kim. "You should've left things alone, Kim.
Let Jason work it out on his own. Now...." He stood up. "I'm going to go
find him. You girls wait here."

* * *

Donavon was standing on the porch when Tommy came up. He spared the teen a
grim smile. "Hello, Tommy."

"Hi, Mr Scott. Is Jason here?"

"He's here. I don't think he feels like talking to anyone right now,
though."

"He's pretty upset, huh?"

"You could say that. What do you know about this, Tommy?"

Tommy ventured up the porch steps. "I'm afraid it was Kim. Jason told her
how he felt about Trini, and Kim spent the next week bugging him about it,
till he went and talked to Trini. I told her she should have just let
things be."

Donavon shook his head. "Jason has just never been lucky with girls. I
don't know what it is, but they just seem to think he's just another school
jock,without feelings."

"Trini doesn't think that," Tommy protested.

Donavon nodded. "I know, Tommy. The thing is, Jason has liked Trini for a
long time, even before Kimberly and Zack came to Angel Grove. He's kept it
to himself for so long because he was always afraid to let anyone know. Now
he's taken the chance, and had his hopes smashed, it's going to be very
hard for him to trust anyone again."

Tommy stared down at the wooden steps. "He really got hurt this time,
didn't he?"

"Yes, he did. Much more than any time before. He really does love Trini,
Tommy. It isn't a teenage crush."

Tommy slumped against the post. "Damn... I should've told Kim to mind her
own business."

Donavon shook his head. "No. Jason couldn't keep his feelings hidden
forever, although I know he'd certainly try. No, he had to say something
sooner or later. It's just unfortunate that nothing came of it. He'll get
past it eventually."

"You think I could go talk to him...?"

Donavon hesitated, then motioned to the door. "You can try. Don't be upset
if he won't respond, though."

The White Ranger nodded and went inside the house.

* * *

"Jase?"

Tommy paused outside Jason's bedroom door, listening carefully. There was
no sound from within. He sighed softly and tried again.

"C'mon, Jase, don't be so stubborn. Open up."

Still no answer. Tommy bit down on his lip. Stubborn asshole... he thought.
"You've got five seconds to open the door, or I'm leaving."

*Smart, Tommy... He doesn't want to talk, and you threaten him with
leaving?*

He sighed heavily, then. "Okay, pal. I'm coming in, whether you like it or
not."

He pushed the door hard, and was surprised when it swung open easily. Tommy
stepped inside, prepared to confront his best friend... and froze. The room
was empty; Jason was gone.

"Jase? C'mon, man, this is no time to play hide and seek..."

He strode over and checked in the adjoining bathroom, but Jason was not
there. Then, finally, Tommy noticed the open window. "Aw, hell..." he
muttered. "Where's he gone...?"

He turned to head out of the room, and his gaze fell on something that
froze his blood. Jasons morpher and communicator, both sitting on the desk.
Jason had taken off, and left them behind...

Snatching them up and hiding them in his jacket, Tommy ran from the room.

* * *

The rangers teleported into the Command Centre on a summons from Zordon,
and they were confronted by a near-frantic Tommy.

"What's wrong?" Kim asked uneasily. Tommy held up a morpher and
communicator for them to see.

"I went to talk to Jason. He's taken off, and he left these behind."

"Oh no..." Trini whispered, stricken. "No..."

"This is very serious, Rangers," Zordon told them in a perpetually grim
voice. "Without his morpher or communicator, Jason is open and vulnerable
to attack. We must find him before Zedd does."

"Well, where would he go?" Zack asked. "C'mon, guys, think!"

"He'd go somewhere that none of us would think of," Billy said quietly. "If
Jason doesn't want to be found, then we won't be able to locate him."

"I don't know, but it can't hurt for them to keep a lookout. C'mon, let's
go."

* * *

Jason paused on the road, looking around slowly. He was hungry; his stomach
was growling in protest. Checking his pockets, he found approximately four
dollars in change. Just enough for a chocolate bar and a bottle of drink...
Crossing the road, he walked into the convenience store... and into a
nightmare.

A man of indeterminate age spun around as Jason walked in, and lifted up a
shotgun which he aimed straight at the hapless boy. "Great," he snarled,
"just what we need. Get down, kid. Right now!"

Jason had to force himself to respond, and he dropped to the floor, his
heart beating twice as fast as normal. A second man, armed with an
automatic pistol, came to stand over him. "Smart kid. Stay there, and don't
move." He looked back to his companions. "How much longer?"

"A few minutes," someone else that Jason couldn't see called back. "The
stupid old man forgot the combo, and I've gotta blow it open."

_Blow it open...?_ Jason thought numbly. What's going on?

"C'mon!" another man screamed. "The cops'll be here any minute! He hit the
goddamn alarm!"

The first man that had threatened Jason with the shotgun strode over and
prodded him roughly with the barrel. "No worries. We've got ourselves a
hostage here, if things don't work out."

"Are you nuts?" the second man hissed. "We don't need to extra baggage!"

"We will if the cops show up. Hurry it up in there!"

"Ah, shut up..." came the snarled reply.

* * *

Trini looked around helplessly. Nobody she talked to had seen Jason, and he
had been in none of the private spots that she knew he liked to go to. The
others had had no luck, either, and Trini could only assume that Jason had
left the city limits.

_Jason, where are you?_ she thought desperately. _We need you!_ Shaking her
head, she turned... and walked straight into Richie.

Trini hesitated, then told Richie everything, including Jasons confession
earlier that day. "...and now we don't know where he is," she finished off.
"I'm really worried. Can you help us look for him?"

Richie frowned. "Forget it. I've got no time for any guy that puts moves on
my girlfriend."

Trini was stunned. "What...? Richie, how can you say that? You and Jason
are friends..."

"Not if he made a move on you," Richie snapped. "If he's taken off, then
good. He can stay away. If I see him, I'll damnwell have a piece of
him."

Trini couldn't believe what she was hearing. All of a sudden, Richie was
possessive of her in a way that he had never been before... and she didn't
like it one bit. "Well," she snapped, "Jason is my friend, and even if you
wont help look for him, I'm still going to. Goodbye."

"Yes," she spat, "we have." Yanking herself out of his grasp, she stalked
away from him in fuming anger.

* * *

"Got it!"

Three more men emerged from somewhere that Jason couldn't see, dragging an
old man with them. One held a heavy bag in one hand.

"Good," the man with the shotgun growled. "Now, let's clear out..."

He trailed off as the sound of sirens reached their ears, and Shotgun
snarled in anger. "The cops! Old bastard..."

"What do we do?" another man asked anxiously. Shotgun motioned to the old
man.

"We can't take him, and I don't want him blabbing to the cops. Kill him."

Jason watched in horror and growing terror as the old man was shot dead
right in front of him. Shotgun then turned his attention to Jason. "Now,
about this one..."

"The cops are coming!" another of the gang yelled. "I can see 'em!"

Shotgun yanked Jason roughly to his feet. "Hostage. Get moving, kid."

* * *

Taking a back road, they were able to avoid being seen by the police, and
soon were on the open road, fast moving away from Angel Grove. Shotgun
chuckled and prodded Jason, who had been tied up tightly, gagged and
blindfolded. "Not bad, huh, kid?"

Jason squirmed and gave a muffled protest that drew laughter from the men.
Shotgun laughed gratingly.

"Go ahead, protest all you like. Ain't no one to hear you that's gonna
listen. But you listen to me. You do what you're told, and you might live
through this. Because if I don't have any worries about killing an old man,
then I sure as hell don't have any when it comes to killing a kid. You got
that?"

Jason fell still and silent, more frightened than he had been for a long
time. Trini... Please God, get me out of this so I can see her again...

He shut his eyes, and wished uselessly that he'd never left home.

Some hours later....
Donavon and Sarah Scott were in their family room along with Tommy and his
parents, the Olivers trying hard to comfort the stricken parents.

"He's probably not far away," Melanie said reassuringly. "He's more than
likely just gone somewhere to be alone, and sort himself out."

"Yeah," Tommy said anxiously. He looked to Donavon. "You said he was really
upset..."

Donavon nodded, trying to convince himself that they were right. "You're
probably right. I just can't believe that Jason wouldn't even let us know
that he's all right."

Sarah got up unsteadily. "I'm going to make coffee..." Melanie started up
as well, but was interrupted when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Sarah mumbled, and disappeared into the hallway. She
reappeared less than a minute later with a police officer. Donavon was on
his feet in an instant, as was Michael.

"No, Ma'am, he's all right, as far as we know. We were contacted by the men
responsible, and they have Jason with them, as a hostage. We were able to
speak to him for a minute, and he is all right. He hasn't been harmed."

Michael came forward. "Men held up a drugstore and took a hostage? Why?"

Matthews hesitated, then confessed the assumed reason. "They killed the
clerk, sir. We assume they took Jason because he must have witnessed the
murder."

"They'll kill Jason, too..." Donavon whispered, stricken.

Michael shook his head. "No. Not if they got away before the police arrived
on the scene. If they only wanted to prevent Jason from identifying them,
they would have killed him on the spot. No, they took him for another
reason. We have to find out what, and we have to get him back safely."

Tommy had remained silent throughout the exchange, and now he slipped away,
into the hall. "Come in, Zordon," he said as loudly as he dared.

"Receiving you clearly, Tommy."

"Zordon, I'm at Jason's home. I just found out, Jase was taken hostage in a
store hold-up. Can you call the others? I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Big trouble," Tommy said hoarsely. "Jase was on the road to Stone Canyon.
He stopped in at a roadside store that was being held up. The men doing the
robbery killed the clerk and took Jason hostage."

"Oh no..." Trini whispered, tears filling her eyes. In the brief time since
her confrontation with Richie, she had reassessed her feelings, and
suddenly realised that she did care about Jason a lot more than just as a
friend. That hehad stood back for so long and not interfered with her life
just to satisfy himself only strengthened what she was starting to feel for
him. Now, the fear that she might lose him before they even had a chance
together....

"Well get him back," Tommy said vehemently. "Dad said if the men were going
to kill him, they would have done it right away, because they got away
before the police got there. Also, Lieutenant Matthews said the men
contacted them and let them talk to Jase. So, he's okay...."

"For now," Billy pointed out in a strained voice. "Who knows what they'll
decide to do? This isn't as if Jason was in one of Zedd or Rita's
dimensions. He doesn't have his communicator or his morpher with him."

"Are you saying you can't find him?" Kim demanded.

Billy winced just a little. "No, but..."

"Then lets get to work."

* * *

Jason had no idea where they were heading. All he knew was that it was away
from Angel Grove. There had been those few minutes when the van had
stopped, and he had been forced to talk to an Angel Grove police officer on
the phone, just long enough to say he was okay, and then they'd been on
their way again.

He withheld a moan, knowing it was pointless. The best thing he could do
was to simply stay still and continue to do as he was told.

"Hey, kid, you awake?"

Jason didn't move, and carefully kept his breathing even to give the
impression that he was asleep. Shotgun prodded him lightly, and Jason
pretended to stir just a little, but then became still again.

"Yeah," Shotgun replied. "We'll lay low there for a few days, maybe a week,
then get going again."

"What about the kid?"

"Who knows? We might be able to a get a few bucks out of him. His folks
might be desperate enough to pay a ransom. Anyway, we stick with our
original plan. If we need it, he'll serve as a hostage."

"When are we going to return him?" another voice asked.

Shotgun chuckled. "Return him? You moron, we aren't gonna return him! The
little bastard's seen our faces! Soon as we know for sure that we don't
need him anymore, I'll put a bullet in his head and dump him where he won't
ever be found."

Jason had to struggle not to cry. So they were going to kill him anyway.
Use him as a hostage, or for ransom, then kill him.

_Stay calm,_ he ordered himself. _Just keep your cool._

But it was impossible, and the fear continued to grow.

* * *

After what must have been hours, the van finally came to a halt, and Jason
was pulled roughly to his feet.

"C'mon, kid," someone growled harshly into his ear. "Out..."

The door of the van slid open, and Jason was greeted with a blast of cold
air. He gasped... and realised the gag had been removed.

_I must have fallen asleep,_ he thought as he was pushed roughly out of the
van. The blindfold was still firmly in place, though, and he stumbled over
an out-jutting tree root. A moment later, a strong pair of hands locked
onto his arms.

"This way," the voice said, and he was propelled in a new direction.

>From the crunching beneath his feet, Jason guessed he was walking on a
thin layer of snow. Which meant that the cabin he'd heard mention of was
somewhere in the mountains.

Jason felt his heart sink. The mountains, providing it was the mountain
range near Angel Grove, was still a long, long distance away. He was right
out of everybodys reach...

His foot struck something hard and he went down with a crash, landing on
what he realised were rough, wooden steps. A moment later, the hands yanked
him back up, cursing him angrily.

"Stupid, clumsy brat..."

"I can't see..." Jason said in a voice that trembled from the cold as well
as fear. A fist thumped hard against his shoulder pushing him roughly
through a door.

"That's the whole idea."

"Put him in the back store room," another voice ordered. "Leave the
blindfold on and keep him tied up. Don't want him getting any ideas about
escape."

Jason was shoved down a hallway and into a small, bare room, moving so fast
that he slipped on the smooth wooden floor and crashed into the opposite
wall.

The door slammed shut a moment later, and Jason heard a key turning in the
lock. Realising he was trapped, he slumped down against the wall in
helpless shock.

_Please God get me out of this..._ he thought silently, tears beginning to
trickle down his cheeks beneath the blindfold.

* * *

Tommy sat by his window, staring out of it desolately. Hours of work on
Billy and Alpha's behalf had done nothing to locate Jason, and with night
falling, the rest of the team had been shunted out by Zordon, leaving Billy
and Alpha alone to work. His own father had come home dejected at not being
able to find robbers, or Jason, and despite the reassurances that Jason was
safe, Tommy knew his father didn't fully believe it. He shut his eyes, and
tried to picture Jason in his mind. _Where are you, bro...?_

A rational part of his mind argued that it was Jasons own fault. If he had
not gone off the rails over Trini and taken off without his communicator
and morpher... Hell if he had not taken off, period, this would not have
happened. Now, he was only God-knew-where, being held hostage by men who
would possibly snap at the drop of a hat.

Tommy's hands clenched into fists. Part of it was Kim's fault, too. He knew
his reasoning was idiotic, but he couldn't help it. His best friend was in
trouble, and he couldn't help.

Just then, his door swung open, and he looked around to see his father
there.

"We'll get Jason back, Tommy. Somehow..."

Tommy sighed and rose up. "I know, Dad. I'm just mad at Jase. If he wasn't
so damn stubborn..."

Michael wandered over and laid a hand gently on his son's shoulder.
"There's no way this could have been predicted. It's not Jason's fault. He
was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Tommy grimaced. "That's supposed to be the story of my life. Not Jason..."

"I guess the torch has been passed, then," Michael said. The joke was sour,
and Tommy neither smiled, nor laughed.

"That's not funny, Dad."

"I know," Michael murmured. "I'm sorry, son. I know Jason is in a lot of
trouble, and I'm doing the best I can. You just have to keep your fingers
crossed, and hope for the best. All right?"

Tommy conceded. "Yeah. I guess."

"Okay. Go to bed, now, and try to get some sleep."

He squeezed Tommys shoulder lightly, then left the room. Tommy watched him
go before moving back to the window seat to wait out the long night.

* * *

The men, six in all, sat crowded around a small table, eating reheated
Chinese food. They had been in the cabin for nearly two hours now, and had
finally relaxed when no police had shown up. They were just finishing off
the food when one of the men spoke up.

"Anyone feel like finishing off that bit of beef?" he asked. There was a
grumbled negative from the others, and he reached out for the plate.

"You've got a bottomless pit for a stomach," Shotgun growled. The man,
Rufus, shook his head.

"It's not for me. For the kid."

"What?" Shotgun snarled. "Forget it! We aren't wasting food on him."

Rufus took the plate regardless. "You let him starve to death, and he won't
be any use to us at all. I'm going to feed him, and give him a blanket or
something before he freezes to death as well."

Shotgun started up, then chuckled and sat back down with a thud. "Fine. Go
ahead. Won't make any difference in the long run, anyway. That kid is going
to end up dead, no matterwhat you do."

Rufus stared at Shotgun for a long moment before turning and stalking off
down the hallway.

* * *

Jason heard the door open, but didn't move. The truth was that he couldn't
move, because he was so damned cold. He heard footsteps, and then sensed
someone close to him.

_Please, don't hurt me..._ Jason thought helplessly as he lay shivering on
the floor. His silent prayer was answered when the unknown person carefully
covered him with a thick, warm blanket.

"There, that'll at least keep you from getting hypothermia."

Jason turned his head a little, vaguely confused but grateful all the same.
There was a long moment of silence, and then the person spoke again.

"I've got some food here, but if you want it, you're gonna have to let me
feed it to you. 'Cause I can't untie you. Understand?"

Jason managed to nod, too cold to speak. Rufus nodded.

"Okay." He carved a piece of meat in half with the fork and then held it
out to the teen. "Open your mouth."

Jason did so, and a moment later a piece of meat was placed there. He began
to chew slowly, still shivering helplessly. He eventually finished the
meat, and then Rufus spoke in concern.

"You're still cold, aren't you?"

Jason again managed a slight nod. Cold was an understatement. He was almost
frozen, having been in the room for so long without anything at all to keep
him warm.

Rufus stayed still for a long while before gritting his teeth and pulling
his thick, fur-lined jacket off. He had another one in his bag, so it
wouldn't matter to him, but it did matter to the boy. He took the blanket
back, then gently drew Jason forward and slipped the bulky coat over
Jason's shoulders, pulled the coat firmly around the boy's body and
carefully zipped it up. It meant Jason had even less movement than before,
but warmth was more important, right then. He then placed the blanket back
over Jason, making sure to cover his legs as well.

"Better?"

Jason nodded. "Yes," he managed to whisper. "Thank you..."

Rufus started to get up, then stopped. A single tear had found its way
down, beneath the blindfold, and was trickling down they boys cheek. Rufus
sighed softly.

"Look, kid, I know you're scared. Just don't do anything stupid, and you'll
be okay. You understand?"

Again, Jason gave a single nod, but he remembered the words of the man with
the shotgun, and knew it wasn't true.

Mountain Hideaway
The coat was good. After the kind man had left, Jason had found his body
temperature gradually increased to a bearable level. Though his bound
wrists were causing him discomfort and pain, he felt better for having the
thick fur-lined coat around his body.

Sighing a little, he slumped down, trying to work himself into the most
comfortable position that he could manage. It was an impossible task, and
all he succeeded in doing was falling over, onto the floor.

The teen moaned softly, miserably to himself. This was most certainly the
worst ordeal he'd ever been through, far worse even than the time he'd been
trapped in Rita's Dimension of Darkness...

He relaxed a little. Those incidents, terrifying at the time, didn't seem
half as bad now. The endless hordes of putties that they'd had to fight...
The monsters...

Some of it even seemed funny, and he snickered a little to himself,
remembering some of the more ridiculous creatures Rita, and then Zedd, had
sent. And ugly.... They had all looked like something out of a Freddy
Krueger movie, in need of major plastic surgery.

And Goldar. The smile that had edged onto Jason's face faded away. He could
not forget Goldar. Goldar, who had sworn to destroy him.

A moment passed, and then Jason chuckled as the irony of his situation
struck him. He had been trying to run away from his problems, and all of a
sudden, he was facing a permanent out from his life. Goldar had promised to
destroy him, but it looked like the over-grown monkey was going to miss out
on his chance.

_Those bastards out there are gonna kill me long before Goldar gets to
me..._

He paused, wondering whether he would prefer to die by bullet or sword. A
moment later, his senses came back again.

Nausea filled Jason's gut as reality struck home. Then, gradually, all
remaining humour was drained from his body. Shuddering, he slumped on the
hard floor and willed himself to sleep.

Twenty-four hours later
Michael had called the Scotts to his house to tell them what they had found
out, mainly because it was private, and away from the press. Now, with
Tommy present as well, he spoke quietly to Jason's parents.

"We've been contacted by the men who have Jason. I'd have to say now that
their taking him was a mistake on their part. From what we've been able to
figure out, they took him to guarantee a safe getaway, if they ran into
trouble. Because they managed to avoid that, though, now they're stuck with
a hostage that they don't need."

"And?" Donavon pressed.

"And so it seems they've decided to try using him for ransom. They've
demanded five million for his return."

"Five million?" Tommy whispered, stricken. He didn't know anyone who could
produce that sort of money...

"Chicken feed," Donavon growled. "I'd pay fifty million to get Jason back.
How long do we have to get the money?"

"Twelve hours. Donavon, how can you get that sort of money? You don't earn
enough..."

Donavon glanced at Tommy warily, then spoke. "Sarah and I have enough money
to pay any ransom demand for Jason. I don't care what it costs, Michael. I
just want my son back."

Michael was stunned. "You have five million dollars?"

Sarah and Donavon looked at one another, and then Donavon spoke. "We can
get it. That's all I'll say."

Michael grimly agreed. "Okay. Let's get going, then."

* * *

How long he'd been in the room, Jason had no idea. He'd lost complete track
of time a long while ago. He could have been there for hours or days, but
which it was, he didn't know.

The door opened suddenly.

"C'mon, kid, time to move..." The man trailed off, seeing the coat that had
been keeping Jason warm. "What the hell is this? Rufus, you moron..."

Jason shuddered as the coat was pulled roughly off him, and he was pushed
down a hallway, to where the rest of the men seemed to be. At least, that
was what he could tell from the murmur of voices.

A moment later, Jason heard the man's voice speak gratingly into his ear.

"Okay, kid. You listen to me. Your old man's on the phone. He wants to know
you're okay. You're going to be on the phone for just long enough to tell
him that you're okay, and to tell him to pay the ransom. Got it?"

Jason was confused. "Ransom?" he stammered.

Shotgun glowered at the boy. "Your folks are gonna fork out five million to
get you back, kid. You're gonna tell them to pay it, cause that's the only
way you're gonna get out of this alive. Now, talk!"

Jason felt the phone piece being pressed against his face, and he spoke in
a trembling voice.

"D... Dad?"

"Jason? Thank God..."

"I... I'm supposed to tell you to to pay what they want or they'll kill
me..."

Anger flooded his body, and he spoke before he fully knew what he was
doing.

"Dad, don't pay the money! They're going to kill me anyway..."

Shotgun lifted his pistol and struck Jason hard across the temple, cursing
the boy angrily. Jason collapsed to the floor, stunned by the blow. Shotgun
then spoke angrily into the phone.

"You get the goddamned money, or you'll never see your boy again."

He cut the connection, then looked down at Jason. "Little bastard... Put
him back in the damned room! And no more comforts. Let the brat freeze to
death. It'll save me a bullet if he does."

* * *

In the Scott family's living room, everyone looked around at one another,
horrified.

"Oh god..." someone finally whispered. Tommy, who had been silent in one
corner, shut his eyes and covered his mouth with one hand.

"Well," Donavon said in a strained voice, "I don't know about anyone else,
but I'd be inclined to believe Jason over that psychopathic maniac."

Close behind him, Sarah gave a miserable sob. "They're going to kill my
baby..." she cried, her shoulders starting to shake uncontrollably.

Melanie reacted quickly and led her from the room.

Michael looked to Donavon. "It's your money... and your son. What do you
want to do?"

Donavon was unrelenting. "I'll get the money, but those bastards won't see
a cent of it. I'm going to get my boy back, even if I have to do it
myself."

Michael nodded his understanding. "We'll tell them you're getting the money
as soon as they call back.

Command Centre
"It's up to us," Tommy said in a disturbingly soft voice. "Those men don't
have any intention of letting Jason go. Jase said it himself. He told his
dad not to pay any money, that they were going to kill him, anyway."

"Oh god..." Trini whispered, tears filling her eyes. Tommy ran his fingers
through his long hair.

"Look, Zordon, I know about all the rules and everything, but I think this
is a bit more important, now. If we don't break the rules, Jason's going to
die."

Zordon was silent for a painfully long time before speaking. "I must agree
with you this time, Tommy. Alpha, initiate the Computer's Search Engines.
Focus everything on locating Jason. It is imperative that he is found as
soon as possible."

"Initiating search now, Zordon," came the tense reply. Silence fell as they
waited for the results.

"Aw, hell..." Rufus muttered. "Well, you didn't yourself any favours out
there, anyway." He sighed and stood up. "The sooner the Boss puts a bullet
in you, the better," he growled.

Jason stiffened, feeling a touch of panic. Rufus shook his head.

"Stupid kid..." he muttered, stomping out of the room.

Jason heard the door slam, then the key turn in the lock. Shutting his eyes
behind the blindfold, he slumped down and gave a muffled sob of distress,
and wondered helplessly if he would ever see his friends and family again.
At that thought, a new wave of grief flooded through him.

Jason felt a twist of pain in his soul as, in the lonely, frightening
silence, his personality literally began to split down the middle, his
good, kind nature separating from the harsh, battle-worn soldier that had
defeated Rita and Zedd so often.

"That's not true," he whispered, stricken.

Isn't it? Think about it, Scott. She's in love with Richie. She told you
she was. That's what got you into this mess to begin with.

"Shut up..." Jason whispered hoarsely, starting to feel even more
frightened than before. A soft, cruel laughter rippled through the room,
and Jason was unaware that he was responsible for it.

You stupid, weak moron. You're pathetic, you know that? Only a pathetic
idiot would run away because of a girl. And now you're going nuts. Did you
know that?

"No, I'm not," Jason protested desperately.

Oh, you're not, are you? Well, then, there must be someone else in this
room, talking to himself

Panic struck Jason as he finally dragged himself back to reality and
realised that he had, indeed been talking to himself.

Shotgun stood up angrily. "Really? Time to teach that little bastard a
lesson."

Snatching up the poker from the fireplace, he stormed off down the hallway,
and almost kicked the store room door off it's hinges.

Jason stopped singing abruptly, fear clenching his stomach. He could guess,
from the ferocity with which the door had been flung open, that it was
Shotgun in the room with him. The door swung shut again, and then a
menacing voice spoke, barely inches from his face.

Shotgun felt an irrational spark of fury, and he struck Jason viciously
across the face with his fist.

"You think I give a damn what your name is?"

Jason swallowed hard, and tasted blood in his mouth. He didn't really know
if it would do any good, but it was something he remembered from watching
Silence Of The Lambs. A good movie, he reflected, but his mother had
kittens when she'd realised that he'd seen it. He recalled it being said
that making a captor think of his hostage as human made it harder for them
to kill the hostage. Maybe he could do the same here.

Shotgun lifted the poker and hit Jason over the shoulder, effectively
cracking the bone. "You like that, Jason?"

Jason gave a faint sob of pain. Then again, maybe not....

"Aw, did I break something?" Shotgun taunted. "What a pity. How about
here?"

Jason gasped in stunned pain as he was struck hard in the stomach. He had
no idea what it was that he was being hit with, but it was hard enough to
do a lot of damage. Realising dimly that it would be over quicker if he
didn't fight, he slumped back against the wall to take the abuse.

Shotgun chuckled evilly when he saw his young victim submit himself to the
assault, and he went on to beat him even harder. Within a matter of
minutes, Jason was nearly unconscious, and Shotgun was having the time of
his life.

"We'll have to do this again," he sneered at the wounded boy. "Of course,
next time I'll probably beat you to death. You ever wondered what dying
feels like, Jason? Well, I'll tell you a secret. Anticipation of death is
worse than death itself. And I didn't learn that from a Steven Segal movie.
It's true, kid. Take a minute and think about it. You're going to die. I'm
going to kill you myself, and I'm going to enjoy doing it. Think on
that."

Still laughing, he straightened up and, delivering a final kick to the
defenseless boy, stalked out of the room, locking the door behind him.

Command Centre, a short while later.
"I've got him!"

All teens, rangers or not, came forward anxiously.

"Where?" Tommy demanded frantically. "Where is he?"

"Look in the viewing globe," Alpha replied. They all went and looked, and
were horrified beyond comprehension.

"Oh no..." Rocky whispered.

Trini gave a choked sob of grief and fear. "Jason..."

They could see Jason in the viewing globe, in some sort of small room,
blindfolded and with his hands bound behind his back. Worst of all were the
countless bruises and gashes that covered his body. He wore only a
sleeveless top and his jeans, now dirty and torn, and he was shivering
badly from the cold.

"Jase..." Kim whispered. "Zordon, we have to get him back!"

"There are problems, though," Zordon said grimly. "A snow storm has begun
over the mountain. The closest you can teleport to the place where Jason is
being held, is at the bottom of the mountain."

"And that's just the start" Zack moaned as the alarm rang. "What is it
now?"

"Zedd has sent three monsters to attack the city," Zordon told them grimly.
"I am afraid defeating the monster must take precedence, rangers. Jason's
rescue must wait."

They would have liked to have argued, but they couldn't.

"Okay," Tommy conceded reluctantly, "but we're getting back to this as soon
as we've taken these monsters down."

"Very well," Zordon replied, as the teens teleported out. Soon, only Adam
and Aisha were left.

"Zordon, couldn't we go?" Aisha asked.

"What do you mean, Aisha?" Zordon asked.

"I mean, couldn't we go and try to rescue Jason? It's pointless for us to
hang around here, doing nothing."

"Yeah," Adam said eagerly. "We could at least get up there and get an idea
of the situation, for when the others arrive."

"I am sorry, Adam and Aisha," Zordon said grimly. "I cannot allow that. As
urgent as the situation is, I cannot justify placing you both in
danger."

The two teens exchanged annoyed looks. Typical, they both thought. Aisha
decided to change tact.

"Fair enough," she conceded, ignoring the sharp look from Adam. "So, where
exactly are they hiding out? It must be right away from civilization."

"It is a cabin approximately five miles up the mountain from the ski
lodge," Alpha replied. "It can be reached by diverting from the ski path
approximately halfway down the mountain."

"That isn't the only way to reach it, is it?" Adam asked. "I mean, they had
to get up there, and I can't imagine them bothering to drag Jason
along..."

"There is a road," Zordon replied, "but it has been snowed-in. At the
moment, the only way to or from the cabin is via the ski paths."

Adam and Aisha looked knowingly at one another. Time to go...

"Look, if there's nothing more we can do," Aisha said carefully, "we might
as well go."

"Could you teleport us to Angel Grove Park?" Adam asked. "We might go to
the Youth Centre, or something. You know, wait for news."

"Very well," Zordon replied. "I am sorry I cannot allow you both to go
after Jason, but it is too dangerous."

"We understand," Aisha said. Zordon nodded, then activated teleportation
and they were both gone in a flash of white light.

* * *

"Sometimes," Aisha said breathlessly as they began to run along the path,
"I wonder whether Zordon's as smart as we thought."

"He's smart," Adam replied. "He just doesn't have the human capacity for
lying through his teeth. So, he doesn't realise when others do it. C'mon,
this way."

"Where are we going?"

"To get someone who'll help us. The rangers are gonna be busy for ages, and
we could be up at that cabin by the time they finish up."

"But who?"

"Donavon Scott. Jason's dad."

* * *

Donavon Scott stood outside his home, staring bleakly towards the fight
that was taking place in the distance. The Rangerswere at it again. They
were busy fighting monsters, while his son was being held for ransom He
shut his eyes, recalling Jason's plea not to pay the money.

_The money is nothing,_ he thought miserably. _I just want my boy._

"Mr Scott!"

He looked up to see two teenagers running along the path towards the house.
It was Adam Park and Aisha Campbell...

"We aren't joking," Adam said. "I can't explain how we know, but we do
know. The men who took Jason are holed up in a cabin in the ski mountains.
The road has been snowed in, but it can be reached via the ski paths. We
know how to get there."

Donavon stared at them in shock. "You're serious, aren't you?"

"Yes, sir," Adam said anxiously. "We can't tell the police, though. They'll
go up there with a whole force, and it'll only put Jason in more
danger."

He disappeared, only to reappear a minute later with Michael Oliver. The
chief of police was looking thoroughly unimpressed.

"What are you two trying to do?" he demanded. Adam and Aisha looked grimly
at each other. Don't falter...

"Sir, we aren't lying," Adam said desperately. "We know Jason's there. If
we're lying, you can arrest us yourself."

Aisha nodded her agreement. Michael ran his fingers through his hair,
caught in a dilemma. The two were serious... or were they?

"All right. Let's say its true. Why didn't the two of you go up there
yourselves?"

"Because neither of us has a license," Adam replied simply, "and we're not
stupid enough to put Jason at risk by going up there alone. Chief Oliver,
please! We aren't kidding about this!"

Michael decided. "Okay. We've got three hours before another call. I'll get
my two best men, and then the six of us are going up there."

"Six?" Adam echoed. "Us, too?"

"Yes, you too. You know where this place is, we don't." He motioned to the
unmarked van. "Go and get in."

Adam and Aisha ran to the van, praying to God that nothing went wrong.

Mountain Hideaway
"You look like hell."

Jason turned his head a little. That sounded like the one called Rufus...

Rufus walked over and crouched down in front of the boy. "I'm sorry that he
beat you up. Did he hurt you bad?"

Jason clenched his jaw shut and turned away, refusing to answer. He had
started to trust this man, but that thin trust had been shattered when he
had make the remark about killing him. Rufus rolled his eyes,
exasperated.

"That's a fine way to treat me. I take care of you, kid, and you act like
that? I don't think so."

Fear touched Jason's soul. There was an instability in the man's voice that
he had not heard before. And something else that he couldn't quite
place...

Rufus reached out and touched Jason's pale cheek. "You're so cold. Well, I
can fix that."

Jason sat frozen as Rufus began to touch him in an intimate way that scared
the hell out of him. Rufus slowly rubbed warmth back into Jason's cheeks
and shoulders, ignoring the boys sobs of pain as he put pressure on the
broken shoulder bone. He then rubbed the boy's arms, chest and stomach.

The fear began to turn to nausea. He could take the physical abuse, but not
what he was anticipating from this man.

Rufus leaned forward, running his fingertips lightly over Jason's face and
down his chest and stomach. "Not bad at all..."

A hideous grin filtered onto his face, and he let his hand drop down below
Jason's waist.

Jason pulled back as far as he could and, opening his mouth and lungs,
screamed in panic. It had the desired effect, and the door was flung open
as someone else strode in.

"Rufus? What the hell do you think you're doing? You crazy bastard!"

"What the hell is going on here?" another voice demanded. Jason wasn't sure
whether to be relieved or terrified as he recognized Shotgun's harsh
voice.

"Boss..." Rufus stammered. "I.... I was just... I mean, the kid..."

"You crazy son of a bitch," Shotgun snarled. "Get the hell out of here.
We've got enough problems without you getting horny over this kid! Now, get
out, and if you go anywhere near this room again, I'll shoot you
myself!"

Rufus straightened up and, sparing a final glance at Jason, stormed from
the room. Shotgun waved the other man from the room, then went back and
crouched beside Jason.

"Don't make any mistakes, kid. I didn't do that because I'm getting a soft
spot for you. Rufus is just totally screwed up in the head. His daddy used
to do stuff to him, and I guess the tendency got passed on. For all I care,
Rufus could go ahead and full-on rape you. I know he'd like to. He had that
look in his eyes. But we don't have time for that crap. As soon as the snow
thaws a little, we're gone. Whether you come with us depends on how many
cops are crawling around this mountain, and I don't need the hassle of
having to move a traumatised kid. On the other hand, if it turns out that
we don't need you anymore, then Rufus can do anything he damnwell likes to
you, and it'll be the last thing you know before I put a bullet through
your head.

"See, we don't really need any money. It'll just be an extra perk if your
old man comes up with it. That won't make any difference to you. I'm going
to kill you no matter which way this goes."

Chuckling cruelly, he stood up and strode from the room, leaving Jason to
his growing terror.

* * *

Adam had taken the lead almost from the start. He had been skiing in the
mountains before and knew the main ski path pretty well. Probably better
than any of them, and so no one argued when he suddenly turned off the path
and led the way into the forest.

He remembered, as they went, that he had seen the cabin before that Jason
was supposed be in. Years back, on one of his earlier ski trips with a
cousin, they had missed a directional arrow and taken a wrong turn, thanks
to a friend who like practical jokes. They had found their way back, but
not before spotting a cabin about half a mile out of the way of the ski
path. He and his cousin had made up stories about that cabin, but it had
soon faded from his memory.

Now, he recalled it again, along with how to get there.

Six skiers finally came to a halt less than a hundred metres from a
secluded cabin.

"Here," Michael growled, "take this." He passed his gun up to Donavon.
"Just in case. And don't be afraid to use it, for God's sake."

Donavon grimaced as he tucked the gun into his belt and went in. *No,* he
thought, *not for God's sake. For Jasons sake...*

* * *

Jason, heard the window above him being forced open, and he lifted his
head, confused and frightened. What was going on? A moment later, there was
a soft thud as someone landed on the floor close to him.

"Who... Who's there?" he asked in frightened whisper. Donavon faltered,
taking in his son's battered features with a rush of anger.

_Those bastards..._

He forced himself back to reality. "Jason, it's me."

Disbelief flooded Jason's face. "Dad?"

"Yes. Don't worry, you're not hallucinating. Here..."

He gently brought his son forward and used a pen knife that Adam had given
him to cut the ropes. "Can you get up? We have to get you out of here."

"I... I think so."

Jason reached up to take off the blindfold, but Donavon stopped him. "No,
Jason, leave it on. The glare off the snow will blind you, otherwise.
Better to keep it on."

Jason did so without protest, and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet.
Donavon paused, then pulled Jason close in a tight hug.

"My boy.... I was so scared I wouldn't see you again..."

Jason hugged him back, just grateful for the contact.

"Will you two hurry it up?" Michael hissed from outside. "We're running out
of time!"

Donavon nodded. "Okay. I'm going to boost you up to the window, Jason. It's
right above you. Chief Oliver is on the other side, and he'll catch you,
okay?"

Jason nodded. He didn't care how it happened, he just wanted out. Donavon
drew in a deep breath and boosted his son up to the window, carefully
pushing him through.

"Got him!" Michael's voice floated through to him, accompanied by a muffled
sob of pain, and then an apology from Michael. Donavon quickly followed,
landing on the snow beside Michael and Jason.

"Let's get out of here, before they realise he's missing."

Between them, Michael and Donavon managed to lift Jason up and
half-carry/half-guide him through the snow, back to where Adam, Aisha and
the two officers waited.

"Jason!" Aisha cried out as loudly as she dared. Jason shuddered and
slumped against his father, grateful simply to be out of the clutches of
his captors.

Adam hurriedly did so, and Donavon carefully stepped into the front
footholds of the skis. Michael then guided Jason into the back footholds
after wrapping the boy up in a thick coat.

"Shouldn't we tie him to you, or something?" Aisha asked nervously.

"No time," Donavon replied grimly. He looked back over his shoulder at
Jason. "All right. Hold on tight around my waist, Jason. We're going to get
out of here as fast as we can."

Jason wrapped his arms around his fathers waist and held on for dear life,
not daring to let go. A moment later, they were off, heading back down the
mountain towards the ski lodge.

* * *

Rufus glowered at the door of the store room, angry that he had been
stopped in his efforts. He didn't understand why the Boss had stopped him.
After all, he just wanted to make the kid feel good...

He glanced back towards the main room. None of them were paying attention,
so if he could just slip in... He pulled out a large, dirty piece of
material, which he intended to stuff into the boy's mouth. Then, smirking
to himself, he slipped silently into the room without being seen.

"Okay, kid. Time to make you feel all better..."

He trailed off, staring in shock at the empty room. "What the?"

Then he saw the open window. Swearing angrily, he charged out of the room.
"He's gone! The kids' gone!"

Shotgun started up. "What? How could he be gone? The little bastard's tied
up!"

"He's gone!" Rufus shrieked again, more angry that he had missed his chance
for a bit of fun than anything. Shotgun stormed down the hall and into the
storeroom. Sure enough, the room was empty; Jason was gone.

"Goddamn it!" he swore. "Okay, everyone, get their skis, and get moving. He
couldn't have gotten far."

"Why don't we just let him go?" someone asked casually. "He'll probably
freeze to death out there, anyway."

"Because, you moron, he's seen all of us. He can identify us in court. And
probably isn't a definite. There's always a chance that someone will rescue
the brat. I don't know about the rest of you idiots, but I'm not going to
take that chance. Now, get moving! And when you find him, kill him."

They went, grumbling angrily to themselves.

* * *

Jason had held on for a while, but he was weakening, and Donavon could feel
it.

"C'mon, Jason," he begged, not knowing if the boy could even hear him, "not
much farther. Just hang on..."

Jason shuddered a little, but somehow managed to tighten his grip. Donavon
felt a touch of relief, and pressed on.

* * *

The Rangers finally arrived back in the Command Centre after what had
turned into the biggest battle of the lives.

"Plus Goldar," Kim muttered. "Oh, I want to go home and sleep for the next
week."

Tommy strode over to the computer panel. "Zordon, I want the location of
that cabin. We're going after Jason."

Startled silence hit the others. In the heat of the battle, they had
completely forgotten about Jason.

"That may not be necessary, Tommy," Zordon replied. "Look in the viewing
globe."

They all looked, and were startled to see seven skiers heading fast down
the mountain. Two of the skiers were together, on a pair of the newly
designed tandem skis.

"Who?" Trini started to ask.

"Adam and Aisha led Jason's father, Chief Oliver and two police officers to
the cabin while the rest of you were battling the monsters," Zordon
replied. "They rescued Jason, and are on their way back down the mountain
now."

"That's Jase" Zack said hoarsely. "On the tandem skis..."

"With his father," Billy finished.

"Are they okay?" Tommy asked. Alpha responded.

"Perhaps, Tommy. We are watching closely. Jason's absence has been
discovered, and the men are searching the area surrounding the cabin for
Jason right now. They may soon realise that he did not escape on his
own."

The rangers continued to watch the viewing globe in tense silence, ready to
teleport in if it was needed.

* * *

They were within half a kilometre of the lodge when Jason's strength
finally gave out and he collapsed, taking his father with him. The others
quickly backtracked to them, and gathered around as Donavon released
himself and Jason from the skis.

"He's come as far as he can," Donavon said breathlessly as he gathered
Jason up in his arms. "He's totally wiped out."

Michael looked around. "Adam, Aisha, go ahead to the lodge. Find someone
and tell them whats going on. See if you can get a snowmobile, and fast. It
won't take long for those men to figure out that Jason's gone."

Adam and Aisha took off as fast as they could. Donavon watched them go,
then hugged Jason tightly to him.

"Hang on, Jason. It won't be long now."

* * *

Six men altogether, headed down the mountain on skis. They had discovered
the three sets of footprints outside the storeroom window and had figured
out that Jason had been rescued. Now, for their own sakes, they raced after
their hostage, knowing he was the only thing that kept them from escaping
cleanly.

Six men broke out of the trees and skidded to a halt a short distance from
where Michael, Donavon and the two officers were huddled protectively
around Jason, waiting anxiously for Adam and Aisha's return.

Signaling his men to wait, Shotgun moved forward, the balaclava protecting
his face from being seen. He lifted his shotgun up, aiming at the group in
general.

"I'll make this real simple," he said firmly. "We want the kid. Hand him
over, and nobody else gets hurt."

"Yeah, your his old man, all right. Same stupid stubbornness. You've got
one last chance, old man. Stand up, back away, and you can all live through
this."

"What about the money?" Michael protested. Shotgun laughed.

"I don't want the money! I never did! I don't care how much you could pay.
That kid can identify us. I'm not going to let him walk away. Now, back
off!"

Donavon moved around, so that he had formed a shield over Jason with his
own body. "You want my son, you'll have to go through me to get to him."

Shotgun shrugged. "Fine. Suit yourself."

He lifted the gun, released the safety catch, and fired. Donavon shut his
eyes tightly, anticipating the pain, but nothing happened. He looked up
slowly to see what had happened, and all of a sudden, his vision was
blocked by a figure in a near-blinding white suit.

The White Power Ranger looked down at Donavon in concern. "Are you all
right, sir?"

The six men looked at one another in confusion as Michael Oliver and his
two men rose up to stand with the Rangers, making it eight to six. A moment
later, all six rangers drew out their laser pistols, ready to fire if need
be.

It was more than enough, and one by one, the six men dropped their weapons.
As the rangers and the two officers moved in to deal with them, Michael
crouched down beside Donavon.

"Is he all right?"

Donavon looked down at Jason, who clung weakly to him. "I think so. Jason?
Can you hear me, son?"

Jason finally turned his face towards his father. "Dad?"

"It's over, son. You're safe. Those bastards have been caught."

Jason gave a muffled sob and slumped helplessly against his father. Donavon
hugged the boy tightly.

"It's okay," he murmured softly, kissing Jason tenderly on the top of his
head. "Everything's okay."

The White Ranger skidded over, and Michael knew what he wanted to know
before he even had a chance to speak.

"He'll be all right," Michael reassured the ranger. "We're pretty sure
he'll be okay. Thankyou. If you hadn't shown up when you did..."

"We're just glad we did get here in time," White Ranger replied quietly. He
paused, wanting to speak to his friend, but knowing he couldn't take the
risk. Jason, in his current state and with the blindfold, would probably
identify him as Tommy, and not the White Ranger. Finally, he stepped back
and spoke to his own father.

"We will deliver these men to jail. The Pink and Yellow Rangers will remain
here to see that you all get back to the lodge."

Then, without another word, the three male rangers teleported out with the
six men. It was just a minute after that that Adam and Aisha arrived back
on the scene, with two snowmobiles. Taking silent note of the rangers, Adam
spoke as he got off his snowmobile.

"We notified the authorities. They're waiting for you with an ambulance at
the lodge."

Donavon and Michael lifted Jason carefully onto one of the snowmobiles, and
Donavon climbed on behind him.

"All right. I'll meet you back there."

"Don't wait for us," Michael told him. "Just get Jason to hospital. We'll
meet you back in Angel Grove."

Michael motioned to Adam and Aisha. "You two kids take the other machine.
It's not far. We'll get back on the skis."

Adam and Aisha nodded, and followed Donavon and Jason on the other
snowmobile. Michael looked back to the Pink and Yellow Rangers.

"Hang on, guys," Tommy interrupted. "Don't forget who did the real work,
here. We were stuck in a battle for over three hours. If Adam and Aisha
hadn't done anything, who knows what might have happened?"

The others had to concede the truth in Tommy's words. Zordon allowed
himself a wry smile.

"I refused to allow them to go, and so they went and did it themselves. It
was a very valiant effort that thankfully paid off."

The others nodded silently, and then teleported out to go and see their
best friend at the hospital.

* * *

The doctor had just finished examining Jason, and now stepped back, a faint
smile on his face.

"This is one very lucky young man. His worst injury is his shoulder cap,
which has been broken. That'll heal in about six weeks, or so."

"What about his eyes?" Sarah asked, looking in concern at the pale area of
flesh around Jason's eyes. The doctor nodded.

"Yes, well, that was even luckier. Because the blindfold was left on during
the rescue, no damage was done. Admittedly, he'll need dark glasses for a
couple of weeks until his eyes readjust to the light, but there are no
concerns there. He really is very lucky."

Donavon's gaze hardened a little. "I'd appreciate it if you found another
word, Doctor. I'm sure Jason doesn't feel terribly lucky at the moment."

Sarah looked down at her son with tears of relief. "Oh, my baby... I was so
frightened."

Jason peered up at her. "I... I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Running away. I was stupid..."

Donavon rejoined Sarah at the bedside. "Jason, you're not the first boy to
lose his head over a girl, and you certainly won't be the last. Nothing
that happened was your fault, you just happened to be in the wrong place at
the wrong time."

Jason sighed. "I'm glad you didn't pay them anything."

Donavon ruffled Jason's hair affectionately. "I meant what I said, Jason. I
would have paid anything to get you back."

"How?" Jason asked. "You don't make that much. Not to pay five million..."

Donavon smiled. "We'll talk to you later about it. Don't worry now. Just
get some rest."

Jason nodded and was just drifting off to sleep when a familiar voice spoke
from the doorway.

"Is it okay if we come in?"

Jason lifted his head, and managed to make out the images of a group of
several people. He smiled a little.

"Sure," he mumbled, and Donavon signaled the teens into the room.

They filed in, and crowded around the bed. Tommy reached out and gently
squeezed Jason's uninjured shoulder. "Hey, bro, how you doing?"

Jason tried to shrug, but couldn't manage it. "Okay," he conceded. "Better
than I was, anyway."

The others all managed to get a word in, just as Jason slipped off to
sleep. Tommy then stepped away from the bed.

"C'mon, guys, he said quietly. "We'll come back later."

They all filed out, reluctant to leave their friend. Once they were gone,
Sarah spoke.

"All right. What's this about losing his head over a girl?"

Donavon smiled. "It's a guy thing, honey."

Sarah glowered at her husband. "Donavon?"

"I'm just watching out for Jason. Some things are best kept between a
father and son."

Sarah sighed in exasperation. "Fine."

Donavon chuckled softly, and conceded. "Jason has crush on Trini, except
it's more than just a crush. And he's had it for the past few years. He
finally got up the courage to tell her, but she said she didn't like him
like that. It just about broke his heart, and that's why he took off that
afternoon."

Sarah looked upset. "He never said anything to me!"

"That's why I said, some things are better left between father and son..."

* * *

Jason heard the voices of his parents, but could not really make out what
was being said. Finally, he gave up trying, and fell into a restless sleep
that was haunted by nightmarish images. Shotgun the man called Rufus who
had, at first, seemed like a friend but then turned into something else.

You're so cold. I can fix that...

Jason stirred and moaned in faint distress, attracting the attention of his
parents.

"Donavon?"

He signaled Sarah to wait, watching Jason in tense silence.

You're not a bad looking kid...

Jason gave an anguished sob, and began to lash out with his bandaged hands
at an invisible foe. Donavon reacted, then, leaning over and grabbing hold
of his son as firmly as he dared, speaking loudly as he did so.

"Jason, wake up. C'mon, son, wake up now... Jason!"

Jason snapped awake and, a moment later, burst into a flood of tears.
Donavon sat down on the bed and pulled his son close.

"Yeah. More than he'll admit. He's so scared, he can't sleep without having
nightmares. He's terrified those men will come for him."

Kim blinked back tears. "He's frightened to be alone. I was in there
yesterday evening. His folks were in the cafeteria, and I said I had to go.
Jase went into a total panic, and begged me to stay with him. I... I've
never seen him as frightened as that. I don't think I've ever seen him
scared before at all."

"No," Trini whispered. "None of us have. Jason's always been the
indestructible one."

"I've seen him scared," Tommy admitted miserably. When they all looked at
him, he reluctantly explained. "When I was with Rita. When I trapped Jason
in the Dimension of Darkness, and Rita sent me in to kill him. I had him on
the floor, and I was about to run him through with the Sword of Darkness...
He had that same look that he has now. Total fear. He... He's crumbling,
guys."

None of them said a word, but each silently wondered what was going to
happen to their friend and leader.

* * *

Michael Oliver had been there for a while, questioning Jason about his
ordeal under the supervision of his parents and an appointed Prosecutor. He
was nearly through, but sensed Jason was holding something back. For what
reason, he didn't know, but he had to find out what it was.

"All right. That's good, Jason. Now, let's backtrack a bit. This man who
you say helped you out by giving you food and a blanket. What was his
name?"

Jason drew in a slow breath. He really didn't want to go over this again.

"Rufus. I heard someone call him Rufus."

"Rufus," Michael echoed. "He didn't hurt you at all?"

Jason faltered. "He... He never hit me"

"That isn't exactly what I asked."

The teen looked distressed. "What other kind of hurt is there?"

Michael stared down grimly at the teen. He hoped this wasn't leading where
he thought it was. "I think you know."

Jason looked away. "I'm tired. I want to sleep."

Michael stood up slowly. There was no point in forcing the issue. He just
hoped Jason had the good sense to eventually tell someone.

"All right. We'll leave it there. But if you think of anything else,
anything at all, then tell us. All right?"

Jason nodded quickly, still refusing to meet his gaze. Only once they'd
gone, did he look up.

"What are you hiding, Jason?" Donavon asked softly. Jason bit down on his
lower lip.

Jason's temper finally snapped, and he exploded at his parents. "Just shut
up and leave me alone!" he screamed, his voice sharp with fear and
distress. "Why can't everyone leave me alone?"

Donavon was stunned, but it soon faded to make way for grim understanding.
"Well be just outside if you need us, Jason."

Jason started up, watching with distress as his parents left the room,
leaving him by himself in the lonely hospital room.

* * *

"Is this a wise idea?" Sarah asked in concern. "Leaving him alone?"

"We won't leave him alone for long," Donavon reassured her. "Just long
enough so he can sort some things out for himself."

Sarah nodded and was about to agree when the sounds of distressed sobs
reached their ears. Jason was crying...

"Donavon?"

"Just a few minutes, honey. That's all."

She sighed and leaned back against the wall to wait.

* * *

_Don't leave me alone._ Jason thought in growing terror. _Please..._ He
remained alone, though, his parents out of sight and out of earshot.

He looked towards the window, panic rising in his gut. Any minute, one or
all of the men would come through the window, to kill him or do something
worse...

The panic and terror reached its height, and Jason could no longer stand
it. He began to scream for his parents, not even able to see for the tears
that flooded his eyes. It was a moment later that a hand firmly grasped his
good shoulder, and a familiar, soothing voice spoke into his ear.

"It's all right, sweetheart. We're right here. Don't be frightened."

"Mum..." Jason whispered, sobbing pitifully. Sarah gathered her son up in
her arms and began to rock him gently, humming a soft tune that she had not
used since Jason had turned seven. It eventually eased the boy's fear, and
he finally slipped into a quiet rest.

"That was cruel," she growled, once Jason was asleep. Donavon looked grim.

"I didn't like doing it anymore than you, but we can't pamper him, Sarah."

"Pamper?" she choked out incredulously. "Pamper? For God's sake, our only
son was held hostage for four days, led to believe he was going to die,
suffered God knows what torture and torment, and you have the gall to tell
me not to pamper him? How heartless can you be?"

Donavon, however, merely shook his head in grim silence.

Twenty-four hours later
Donavon stood outside the hospital room in heavy silence, staring bleakly
at his hands. He was so lost in thought that he almost didn't notice when
Michael Oliver came up, pale and worried.

"Donavon?" Michael faltered. "What's wrong?"

Donavon looked up slowly. "The doctors had to take off the tips of two
fingers on Jason's right hand. Combination of having the circulation cut
for so long, and frostbite. He said they might have to amputate more... He
may even lose one or both of his hands."

Michael groaned softly. And he only had bad news to add...

"I'm sorry."

"So are we. They had to sedate Jason, because he became hysterical."

Michael shook his head, then signalled to the two officers who stood behind
him. "All right, you two. You're to stand guard outside the door until
you're relieved. You don't even go to eat."

"There's some serious trouble, Don. Two of the men escaped custody. One of
them was the gang leader, the one that Jason called Shotgun. I'm afraid
they may come after Jason."

Donavon felt sick to his stomach. "My boy's still in danger."

"Yes."

A moment passed, then Donavon turned and slammed his fist into the wall in
anger. "Bastards! Why can't they leave him be?"

"I'm leaving these two here," Michael told Donavon. "They've got orders to
let in only immediate family, being you and Sarah, his friends, myself, and
hospital staff with a special police arm band. They won't get to him,
Donavon. I promise."

Donavon, however, only shook his head and wandered dismally back into the
room.

* * *

"What's going on?" Sarah asked as Donavon came back into the room. "Who's
out there?"

"Michael," Donavon replied softly. He paused, looking for a moment at the
almost unnaturally peaceful expression on his son's face before speaking
again.

"Honey, two of the men that took Jason got away from the police."

"What?"

"Michael's worried that they'll come after Jason. He's set up a police
guard outside the door."

Sarah stared at her husband in numb shock. "How could they let them get
away?"

"I don't know. What I do know is that I'm not leaving this room from now on
unless I absolutely have to." He stared down at Jasons sleeping form.

"Those bastards are not getting my son."

* * *

Erik Peters, a.k.a. Shotgun, watched the hospital silently from the car,
running over a dozen different scenarios in his mind of what he could do,
and how they could get hold of the boy. Beside him, in the passenger seat,
Rufus sat tensely.

"I don't see why we just can't get the hell out of here."

"Because if we kill the brat," Peters snapped harshly, "then the cops won't
have enough to take our boys to court. They'll have to let them go. Just
shut up, okay? I'm thinking."

Rufus grunted and slid down in the seat, trying not to look suspicious.

* * *

Jason awoke late that night, and for a long moment he couldn't remember
where he was, or what he was doing there. Then, it flooded back to him
all-too-quickly. He moaned softly to himself and lifted one heavily
bandaged hand to cover his eyes.... and remembered the horrible rest. Early
that morning, he had gone into surgery for reasons that had not been made
known, and had woken up to discover the tips of two fingers on his right
hand had been amputated.

He let his hand drop with a soft thud. Amputated... and he could lose more.
He was not stupid, and had heard the doctor discussing it with his father
when he was just starting to wake up. The full shock of it had hit him as
soon as he fully regained consciousness, and he had become so hysterical,
that they'd needed to sedate him.

Jason stared down at his right hand, trying to imagine how it would look
with two fingers shorter than the others. He didn't like the image that
presented itself to his mind. Especially with the threat hanging over his
head of losing more bits off his hands...

He heard footsteps, and looked around as nurse walked into the room. She
wore a blue armband with the police insignia, Jason noted. He wondered
distantly what was going on, it not entering his mind that it was
indirectly because of him. The nurse, a woman in her early thirties, smiled
warmly when she saw Jason was awake.

"How are you feeling, honey?" she asked, going over to his side. Jason
shrugged wordlessly, not trusting himself to speak. The nurse reached out
to gently smooth back his mussed-up hair.

"I know life seems pretty harsh right now, but it'll get better. Try not to
think about your fingers. Okay?"

Tears welled up in Jasons eyes. "They said I might lose my hands...."

The nurse sat down on the edge of the bed. "The doctors are doing all they
can to save your hands, honey. We just have to keep praying and hope for
the best."

She brushed her fingertips lightly over his forehead and cheek, then got up
to finish her check of the monitors and the IV. She turned to leave, and
Jason spoke anxiously.

"Please, don't go...."

The nurse looked back at him. "Sweetheart, I have work to do..."

"Please..." Jason begged. "I don't want to be alone..."

The nurse smiled, then. "You aren't alone." She glanced over to the far
corner of the room. Jason followed her gaze, and started a little in shock.
Standing silently in the dark corner of the room, was the White Ranger.

The woman slipped out of the room, unnoticed, and once she was gone, Tommy
moved forward, into the light.

"Hey."

Jason stared at his best friend in confusion. "What are you doing...? Here,
I mean...."

Tommy moved up to the bedside and spoke carefully, aware of the police
presence just outside the door.

"We're taking it in turns to stay here. To watch you."

"Why?" Jason pressed. Tommy hesitated, then spoke in a soft whisper.

"Jase, don't panic, okay? I'm only telling you so you know, but you're
perfectly safe..."

Jason had never been a fool, and guessed instantly, through Tommy's
avoidance, what was wrong.

"They got away from the police, didn't they? Shotgun and the others....
They escaped..."

Tommy smiled behind his helmet. "True. So how are you feeling, anyway?
Honestly," he added before Jason could speak. The Red Ranger sighed
heavily.

"After finding out that? Things couldn't possibly get any worse. And now
that I've said that, they probably will. Why me, Tommy? What did I do to
deserve this?"

"You didn't do anything," Tommy told him softly. "It's just stupid, dumb
luck. I said to Dad, when you were still missing, that I thought I was the
one who was supposed to always be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and
Dad said he guessed the torch had been passed."

Jason had to smile, although it was a very bitter smile.

"I'd go along with that. I haven't had anything good happen to me since....
Hell, I can't even remember. I guess the last good thing that happened was
you coming to town."

"I've heard that one before," Jason muttered. "Tell me something, what girl
would want a guy with no hands?"

Tommy frowned. "What do you mean, no hands?"

Jason held up his right hand. "Don't you know? They amputated the tips of
two of my fingers this morning. The doctor told Dad that I might lose one
or both of my hands. Now, tell me what girls would want to be seen with a
guy like that?"

Tommy was too shocked to bring himself to reply. Jason nodded, taking the
silence for agreement.

"Exactly. None. Plus, if I lose even one hand, I'll be off the team. Hell,
I probably am already. I'm sure Zordon doesn't want someone on the team
who's missing bits and pieces all over the place..."

Tommy stared at Jason in shock and confusion. But through the shock, he
heard a pain in his friends voice that he had never noticed before. The
pain of anticipated rejection....

_He really believes that..._ Tommy thought in dismay.

"Jase, do you really think you're that unimportant?"

Jason looked away. "I don't know. All I know is that the girl I love
doesn't love me, I've got a homicidal maniac who wants me dead, I'm in
danger of losing both my hands...." Jason suddenly stopped, his breath
catching in his throat. _No,_ he thought, with a feeling of nausea, _I
couldn't possibly be that unlucky._

He had to know, though, and asked in a trembling voice.

"Tommy, who was the other one that escaped?"

Tommy hesitated, then spoke cautiously. "I think he was called Rufus. Rufus
LaFeit."

Jason slid down in the bed, his already pale face turning ashen. Rufus and
Shotgun... The two worst ones....

Jason began to whimper slightly, almost without realising it.

"Jase?" Tommy asked anxiously, leaning towards him. "What is it?"

Jason couldn't bring himself to say, though. He could not make himself to
say that the one man who had not beaten on him physically, had been the one
to attempt sexual molestation. Tommy stared at his friend in concern. He
had overheard his father talking to someone on the phone, mentioning that
Jason was withholding something. Something that was possibly
important....

"Okay, if that's the way you feel, keep it to yourself. I'm only trying to
help."

He stalked back to the corner and resumed his position, arms folded across
his chest in a stance that was unconsciously similar to Jason. Standing
there, in the dark corner, Tommy never saw the crystal tears that fell from
his friend's eyes.

* * *

"How is he?" Billy asked quietly as he teleported in to relieve Tommy.
Tommy sighed.

"I really don't know. He's asleep at the moment... Billy, maybe you can get
through to him. He's holding back about something, and it's got something
to do with one of the men that escaped. The one called Rufus. Maybe he'll
talk to you, 'cause he sure as hell won't talk to me."

"What do you think it is that he's withholding?" Billy asked in concern.
Tommy shook his head.

"I honestly don't know. Look, I'm going home. Trini will be along to
relieve you in five hours."

Billy nodded, and leant back into the corner as Tommy teleported out. Jason
looked peaceful enough right then, although Billy understood that was
anything but his state of mind while awake. It was perfectly
understandable, he reflected. Jason was likely to be testy, sullen and
unwilling to talk. After what he'd been through, Tommy should have
understood that.

He sighed softly to himself, reflecting how the worst things always seemed
to happen to Jason. Even Tommy had not borne the brunt of things the way
Jason did.

Jason stirred, and Billy moved forward, anxious to see that he was all
right. Kim, during her guard duty, had reported Jason suffering bad
nightmares. Whether he remembered them, they didn't know, but that was not
the point.

Jason had no nightmares, though. Instead, he woke up slowly, and sat up,
rubbing painfully at his eyes. Billy ventured further forward.

Anger flashed across Jason's face, then. "Why is it that everyone keeps
asking me how I'm feeling? It ought to be damned obvious! I'm feeling like
crap!"

Billy shrank back, and Jason instantly regretted his outburst.

"I'm sorry, Billy. I didn't mean that."

Billy sighed. "Yes, you did. It was justified. I should have known. I'm
afraid I simply couldn't think of anything else to say."

Jason was silent for a long moment, staring at his quiet friend. Maybe
Billy would understand...

"Billy, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Has anything ever happened to you that you felt ashamed to tell anyone
about? Even your own parents....?"

Billy drew in a slow, careful breath. "Such as? Can you give me an
example?"

Jason slumped down a little. "I... I'm sorry, this is stupid. I shouldn't
even bother you about it."

Billy strode around to the side of the bed and, after pushing the door
shut, he did what Tommy had not dared to do, and took off his helmet.

"I've had a few things happen to me that I was too embarrassed to talk
about. Especially to me parents. When we lived in Seattle... When my mother
was still alive... I had a lot of trouble with bullies. Even more than here
in Angel Grove. One day, a gang cornered me and..." Billy hesitated, then
forced it out. "They stripped me completely, from head to foot, and ran off
with all my clothes. I hid in a dumpster for hours until it got dark and I
could sneak home. Even then, some people saw me, and there were reports the
next day about an unidentified person running around with no clothes. I was
so humiliated, I couldn't even bring myself to tell my mother. It was
horribly embarrassing."

To Billy, Jason looked almost hopeful. "You've never told anyone about
that?"

"No. Thankfully, the gang was made of teenagers who did not attend my
school, so no one I knew directly ever found out."

"That's embarrassing," Jason conceded. Billy nodded.

"Excruciatingly so."

Jason stared hard at the blue hospital blankets. "Billy, something else
happened... You know, while those men had me. I... I've been too ashamed to
tell anyone."

Billy said nothing, letting Jason take his time.

"All the men... they all got in a few punches at some point. Especially the
leader. It was like a competition, who could leave the biggest bruises. All
of them except one. The one called Rufus..."

Jason faltered, and for a moment, Billy thought he was going to shrink back
inside the protective walls of his mind and not go on. He did, though, with
great difficulty.

"He seemed nice, at first. He gave me a blanket, and a coat to keep warm...
and he gave me food and water so I wouldn't go hungry or thirsty. But after
a while, he started getting strange... Worse than the others. At least I
knew what to expect from the other men, but after a while, I didn't knew
what Rufus was gonna do. Then, he came in and said something about how cold
I was, and he started to... to... You know how mothers will rub your hands
to get them warm again?"

"Rufus did that to me, but he did all over. Then, he made some comment...
said I was good-looking, or something.... and then he started touching me.
First my face.... my chest and my stomach... Then..."

Jason's efforts to explain ended in a choked sob. Billy finally reacted,
and leaned over to rest his hand gently on Jason's uninjured shoulder.

"I understand, Jason. Can you tell me.... How far did it go?"

"After he touched me... below the waist... I panicked and screamed. The
others came, then, and they stopped him. Not because they thought it was
wrong... Shotgun said he didn't want the hassle of having to move a
traumatised kid. Billy, if Dad hadn't come for me when he did.... Something
worse might have happened."

Jason shuddered and began to cry, unable to hold it in any longer. Billy
hesitated, then sat down on the edge of the bed and placed his gloved hand
lightly over Jason's bandaged right hand, and gently urged him to lie back
down, continuing to talk reassuringly to him for some time, until he
eventually fell asleep.

Command Centre
Billy landed back in the Command Centre and pulled his helmet off,
shuddering violently. The others watched him in concern.

"I found out what it is that Jason's been hiding. One of the men... One of
the two that escaped... tried to molest him."

"Shit..." Tommy swore.

Zack looked ill. "No wonder he didn't want to tell anyone."

"You said tried..." Kim asked, and Billy nodded.

"Yeah. Jason said he screamed, and the others stopped it from happening.
Not because they were worried about Jason, of course. Jason said they just
didn't want to be bothered with moving a traumatised boy. It went far
enough, though, that Jason is suffering over it."

"So what do we do?" Zack asked. "We can't keep this to ourselves." He
looked to Tommy. "Your dad's gotta know, man."

Tommy ran his fingers through his long hair. "I know... But maybe we should
wait, and see if Jason tells him on his own. After all, if he told Billy,
he might talk about it to my dad..."

"I seriously doubt that," Kim said. "Tommy, Jason's known Billy for the
longest. He wouldn't be so ready and willing to confide something like this
to just anyone. If anyone tells your dad, it's going to have to be us."

"More specifically, me," Billy added. "In uniform. I think it would be best
at this point in time if Jason is only angry at me."

"What d'you mean?" Zack demanded.

Kim sighed. Even she understood that time... "He means, Jason's gonna know
Billy blabbed. It'd be better if we pretend we don't know, so that, one,
Tommy's dad doesn't get suspicious, and two, so Jason isn't upset at all of
us."

Zack nodded. "Oh. Sure, that sounds cool."

Billy looked miserable. "I feel bad about it. Jason trusted me."

"Did he ask you not to tell anyone?" Tommy asked.

"Well... no."

"Then you are not bound to keep it to yourself. Besides, it can't be kept
secret. You'd better go now, Billy. The sooner the better."

Zack yawned. "And I'm going home. I've gotta relieve Trini in five hours,
and I want as much sleep as I can get."

Tommy nodded. "I think we should all go home. Zordon...?"

Zordon nodded once. "I will contact you all in the event of any trouble."

The teens didn't bother to reply, but teleported straight out of the
Command Centre.

* * *

Billy ended up having to go straight to the Scott home. Jason's parents had
been escorted home by Chief Oliver, to get some much needed rest, and he
was still there when Billy went looking for him.

_Great,_ Billy thought dismally. _I have to tell his parents as well._

He glanced around, but it was extremely early in the morning, and no one
was in sight. He sighed inwardly and, in full uniform, went up to the front
door and rang the bell.

_This is so ridiculous... A Power Ranger ringing a doorbell..._

The door opened, and Donavon froze, staring at the Blue Ranger in confused
shock. Finally, Billy spoke when it became apparent that Donavon was not
going to.

"Hello, Mr Scott. Is Chief Oliver here, sir? I need to see him."

"Uh... Yes... I'm sorry, Would you, uh... like to come in?"

Billy nodded and stepped into the warm hallway, and Donavon shut the door
behind them, then led the ranger into the family room, where Sarah and
Michael were. He motioned nervously with his hand.

"Yes," Donavon replied numbly. Michael disappeared through into the
kitchen, and a minute later they heard a low murmuring as Michael spoke to
one of his lieutenants.

Sarah finally spoke. "Molested...?"

"Yes, Ma'am. Jason said the other men stopped him, but..."

He trailed off, and Donavon finished it off for him. "But it still
happened. Hell... How far did it go? Did he say?"

"He was touched.... below the waist... That's all that happened."

"That's more than enough," Donavon growled. "Damn!"

Michael came back into the room. "I had my suspicions that something like
that had happened. Jason was too evasive. I'm going back there now." He
looked Donavon and Sarah. "Are you two coming?"

"Yes," Donavon replied. "Just let us get our coats."

Michael turned back to Billy. "Thankyou. I doubt Jason would have told
anyone else that, but I needed to know. We're going to step up our efforts
to find those two men, now."

Billy nodded. "Excuse me, please. I have to go."

Without waiting for a reply, he teleported out, thankful to be away from
the house.

* * *

Jason lay still and silent, acutely aware of Trini's presence in the room,
but too scared to acknowledge her. So, he pretended to be asleep, to avoid
having to talk to her. It was foolish, and he knew it. It was his cowardice
that had gotten him into such a horrible mess in the first place. Jason
struggled to stay still, and keep the sobs inside. Cowardice He was a
coward. If he hadn't run away to start with, he wouldn't have been taken
hostage, and none of this would have happened.

"Jason?"

He stiffened a little when she spoke, but continued to lie still. A long
moment passed, and then he heard her walk slowly across the floor, her
footsteps barely audible on the carpet.

"I know you're awake. Why won't you talk to me?"

He kept his eyes shut, not wanting to risk opening them and finding himself
looking up into the mask of the Yellow Ranger.

Trini placed her hands on her hips, frustrated. Billy, Zack and Tommy could
all be stubborn at times, but Jason beat them all. When he got it into his
head to act a certain way, no one could dissuade him. She stared at his
motionless figure in annoyance.

"Why do you have to be so damned stubborn?"

Just then, the door opened and Michael strode in with Donavon and Sarah.
They paused momentarily, glancing nervously at the Yellow Ranger. She
stepped away from the bed, motioning with her hand.

"He's awake. He's just pretending not to be."

Donavon frowned a little, then went up to the bedside. He saw immediately
that the Yellow Ranger was telling the truth. He knew well enough when his
son was faking.

"Jason, we have to talk."

Jason groaned silently. He knew that tone of voice. That was his father's
professional shrink voice. Reluctantly, he opened his eyes.

"What now?"

"Sit up, son," Donavon told him quietly. "This is serious. We had a visit
earlier from the Blue Ranger."

Jason frowned in confusion for a moment, then paled considerably. "That was
supposed to be between me and him!" he exploded. Donavon placed a hand
squarely on Jason's uninjured shoulder.

"Perhaps, but I think we needed to know. Don't you?"

Michael leaned in. "Jason, is it true?"

Jason stared at him for a long moment, then finally glanced furtively over
to where Trini stood in silent vigil.

"Jason, answer me, please," Michael begged.

"Yes," Jason admitted finally, throwing himself back down on the bed. "It's
true. Now, will you leave me alone?"

Donavon stared at his son, grief-stricken. "Do you really want to be alone,
son?"

Jason responded by rolling over sharply onto his side, away from the
adults. Donavon sighed.

"All right. We'll be back after breakfast in the morning."

Sarah reached over and tried to kiss her son, only to be hurt when he
twisted away from her. Donavon drew her out of the room, silently urging
her not to speak. Michael hesitated a moment longer, sparing a grim look in
the direction of the Yellow Ranger, before walking silently out of the
room.

"You don't want to be alone," Trini murmured. "Not really." She reached out
and touched his shoulder lightly. "Jason, we've been friends for so long.
Don't let what happened ruin it."

Jason lay still for a long moment before finally removing his face from the
pillows and looking up at her. "You think I'm being selfish?"

Trini felt her heart twist painfully as she looked down at his tear-stained
cheeks. "No, just stubborn. If anyone has the right to be a bit selfish,
it's you. You've given so much of yourself to the rest of us. Jason, you
never waited around the other day to talk things out. You just ran off on
me... You've never done that before!"

"Well, you had no reason to be," Trini told him. "It's a beautiful thing
when you fall in love with someone. I'm just sorry that I couldn't return
the love." She stroked his cheek lightly. "I do love you, Jason, as a
friend and a brother. I know that probably doesn't seem like much to you,
and I understand that, but right now it means everything to me. I really
appreciate that you never tried to push yourself on to me, like some other
guys have. Like Richie did...."

Jason sat up a little. "Richie...? How d'you mean?"

"Oh, nothing... It's just, he sort bugged me day and night till I agreed to
go out with him. I only said yes to start with because I thought if I went
out once with him, he'd leave me alone. I guess I was feeling a bit jealous
of Kim and Tommy, though... I deluded myself into believing that I really
liked Richie. I never did, though. Not like that. I just didn't realise it
until now."

"It wasn't you," Trini said. "I told you, I was just deluding myself. The
truth is I don't really want a relationship with anyone at the moment."

Jason looked away. He supposed that was fair enough. At any rate, he wasn't
going to encroach on her anymore than he already had. That would have been
plain unfair. He felt her hand come down and close gently over his right
hand, and looked back at her.

"Don't be scared about your hands," she told him softly. "It won't matter.
I'll stand by you. I promise."

Tears flooded Jason's eyes at the simple promise and, acting on impulse, he
hugged her close. Trini returned the hug, sighing inwardly with a feeling
of deep sadness. She hoped that Jason found someone soon who loved him as
much he had the capacity to love others. She had a feeling that only then
would he be truly happy.

The next morning
"Well?" Donavon asked impatiently the next morning as he and Sarah waited
in Dr Carlisle's office. Carlisle hesitated, then looked back at them, a
grim look on his face.

"I'm sorry. It's not good news. It looks like Jason's going to lose his
left hand. I think we can save the right, but his left hand is practically
dead flesh. I need your permission to go ahead, but the sooner we amputate
it, the better. If we wait, it could turn gangrenous."

Donavon turned away, stricken. "This isn't happening... How can you justify
doing this to a seventeen year-old boy?"

Carlisle clenched his jaw. "It's either his hand now, or his entire arm
later on. It's going to happen either way."

"Donavon?" Sarah whispered. He clutched her hand tightly.

"Let us talk to Jason first. He has a right to know before it happens."

Carlisle conceded. "Fair enough."

* * *

The Scotts came into the room to find the Black Ranger standing not in the
corner, but rather by the bedside, chatting to Jason as though he were an
old friend. They entered cautiously, still a little nervous around the
famed super heroes. Jason, however, seemed much brighter than the previous
night, so perhaps they were doing more than simply guarding him

Jason offered his parents a sheepish smile as they came in. "Hi, Mum, Dad.
Listen, about last night... I'm sorry I was so angry...."

Sarah went over and sat down next to him, hugging him quickly. "It's all
right, sweetheart. We understand."

Jason looked back to the Black Ranger. "Course, the next time a certain
Blue Ranger comes in, were gonna have a little chat about
confidentiality."

Zack nearly choked behind his mask. He would have to warn Billy, but then
again... He grinned to himself. _Nah..._

Donavon spoke up finally, looking straight at the ranger.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to sound rude.... But could you please excuse us
for a few minutes? We need to talk to Jason."

Zack moved back from the bed. "Sure. I'll just be outside."

They waited until he'd gone, then shut the door and sat down on either side
of Jason. Jason looked uncomfortable. "It's about last night, isn't? About
what that guy tried to do to me."

Donavon winced a little. "No, son. Although we will talk about that... But,
no. This is.... Jason, its your hands. We've just come from seeing the
doctor."

Jason turned ashen, and he looked down at his bandaged hands. "They're
fine!" he protested anxiously. "Really..."

Donavon reached over and very gently lifted up Jasons left hand. "Can you
feel this, Jason? Can you feel me holding your hand?"

Jason couldn't lie to his parents, he never could. Instead, he remained
stubbornly silent. It meant nothing to his father, though, and the older
man nodded. "I thought so. Jason, your left hand is virtually dead. They
have to take it off."

"No," Jason whimpered in panic. "Dad, no..."

"If they don't do it now, you could lose your entire arm later on. You
don't want that, I'm sure."

Donavon and Sarah exchanged grim looks. Every time something went wrong,
now, Jason started screaming to be left alone, but when he was left alone,
he became even more hysterical... Donavon shifted closer to him. "Stop it,
Jason. Stop it, right now. You listen to me, boy. This is for your own
sake. If the doctors here did nothing, you'd lose more than just a hand.
You have to be reasonable about this."

Jason slumped against his father, tears streaking his face. "It's not
fair," he sobbed. "Why is this happening to me? What did I do wrong?"

"Nothing," Sarah murmured, leaning over to hug him tightly. "Jason, you
didn't do anything wrong. Its just... sometimes fate can be cruel. My poor
baby..."

Jason turned inwards, and continued to cry into his father's strong
shoulder for a long while.

* * *

Outside the room, Zack stiffened when he heard Jason cry out. It didn't
take much for him, or the police officers on duty, to guess what had
happened. One of the officers shook his head.

"That poor kid... No one should be put through what he's gone through."

"You think he'll lose both his hands?" the other queried, and his companion
shrugged.

"Who knows? Even one is too much. I don't blame him for freaking out."

Zack listened to the conversation in heavy silence. He guessed that was
just what the Scotts had needed to tell Jason. That he was going to lose
one or both of his hands... He shut his eyes and hung his head, and wished
the whole thing was just a nightmare that they would all wake up from soon.
It was a wish he knew would not be granted.

* * *

Tommy arrived later that morning with his father, while Rocky was standing
guard in the room. Although the others had tried to convince him that it
wasn't necessary for him to do a guard shift, he had refused, and come
anyway. Now, as he entered the room with his father, he gave a very slight
nod in Rocky's direction, and the new Red Ranger replied similarly.

"How is he?" Michael asked, walking over to look down at the teen.

"Still sleeping off the anaesthetic," Donavon said with a sigh. "God knows
how he'll react when he wakes up."

Tommy peered down at the bandaged stump where Jason's left hand had been
only hours before. He knew how he'd react to losing a hand. He could only
half-imagine how Jason would behave. He paused, a thought occurring to
him.

"Jason's left-handed."

Sarah nodded unhappily. "Yes, he is."

Tommy fell silent, a frown creasing his young face. _Damn those men_ he
thought angrily. _They could have just left him on the side of the road
when they knew they weren't being chased..._

"Donavon, Sarah, could I talk to you folks outside for a minute? Tommy can
stay here..."

The adults left the room, and once they were gone, Rocky moved slowly
forward. "That's it, isn't it? It's over now."

Tommy sighed heavily. "It wouldn't do any good. He'll probably go through
bouts of depression, and we don't need that."

"That's not his fault," Rocky said softly. "I'd get depressed, too, if this
happened to me."

Tommy frowned. "It is his own fault! If he hadn't been so damned stupid and
taken off like he did..."

Rocky was horrified. "Tommy, how can you say that? Man, so he took off
after Trini gave him the shove. Big deal! Considering how many times he's
bombed out with girls, I don't blame him. And being in the wrong place at
the wrong time doesn't make it his fault. Besides, you aren't one to talk.
The others told me how you high-tailed it to the mountains after losing the
Green Powers."

Tommy looked stricken. "They told you about that?"

"Yeah. So lay off Jason, okay?"

"That was different," Tommy grumbled.

"Oh yeah? How?"

"It... It just was," Tommy snapped. Just then, the adults came back in.
Though none said a word, it was clear Michael had not had good news to tell
them. The two men were still on the loose, and Jason was still in danger.
Tommy glanced at Rocky as the Red Ranger moved discreetly back into the
corner, and though he could not see the other boy's face, he knew the
expression was not a pleasant one.

* * *

The first thing Jason became aware of was a dull throbbing in his left
hand. For a long moment, nothing registered. Then, as he gradually came
back to his senses, he felt his hopes soar. Maybe they hadn't needed to
amputate after all....

His eyes fluttered open, and he eventually focused on the concerned
expressions of his parents.

"Mum..." he croaked out.

Sarah very gently squeezed his right hand. "Hey, sweetheart. How are you
feeling?"

"Crap," he managed to whisper. "My hand....?"

Donavon glanced grimly at Sarah. "It was a clean amputation, son. There
were no other problems."

Tears filled Jason's eyes. "It's gone?""

"Yes," Donavon said simply. Jason moaned faintly in distress.

"Easy, son," Donavon told him. "Just try to relax. It won't do you any good
to panic."

"But... I'm left-handed...." Jason whispered.

"You were. Now you'll simply have to learn to use your right hand. Be
grateful, Jason. It's only one hand. You could have been a lot worse
off."

Jason looked across to the window. "I could've been dead...."

"Yes, you could have been," Donavon agreed. "Think about that before you
start bemoaning losing just one hand."

"When is this going to be over?" Jason asked miserably. "When....?"

* * *

Rufus looked over the two unconscious orderlies to his boss.

"You really think this'll work?"

"It'll work. All we need is five minutes alone with the little shit, and
then it won't be a problem anymore. Now, let's go."

* * *

The parents were gone, the boy was alone except for the Power Ranger that
stood on guard. Peters had to struggle to stay calm, but his saving grace
was that the ranger did not seem to recognise him or Rufus. Also, the boy
was asleep and would not be raising the alarm. Time to put the plan into
action...

"Excuse us," Peters said to the Red Ranger. "We need to take care of a few
things. Would you mind stepping out for just a few minutes?"

Rocky didn't move. "I'm sorry. I can't do that."

Peters smiled uneasily. "Look, we've gotta strip him off here..."

"I have to stay," Rocky said firmly. "Just ignore me."

Peters nodded to Rufus, who wandered over, moving right up close to the
Power Ranger. He held one hand behind his back, holding an automatic gun
just out of sight.

"Listen, buddy, we don't want any trouble, we just want some cooperation.
Is that too much to ask?"

Rocky started to reply, then stopped when he felt something hard pressing
into his gut. He looked down and was confused to see a darker red seeping
across the bright red of his uniform. A moment later his legs buckled
beneath him and, as he went down, he heard coarse laughter.

"Hey, look at that! They aren't bulletproof!"

"Rufus, shut the fuck up and get over here...."

Rocky's world tipped upside down and faded into nothing.

* * *

"Check it out," Peters chuckled as Rufus joined him. "The doctors
amputated. Poor little Jason lost a hand."

Rufus blinked hard. "Shit... What now, boss? You just gonna do him?"

Peters brought out a roll of tape and tore a piece off. "Not just yet.
We'll take him out the window, and to the car. By the time anyone realises
what's happened, we'll be long gone. I want to enjoy this. I want to cut
this kid's throat myself."

He reached down and placed the masking tape over Jason's mouth, causing the
boy to wake up. Jason's eyes opened, and his gaze focused on the one man
he'd hoped he would never see again. Peters smiled coldly at the teen.

"Hello, Jason."

Jason went into a panic, but the tape over his mouth guaranteed he couldn't
get a sound out, and Peters and Rufus quickly taped his wrists together.
Rufus sneered at the boy. "Do you know how tough it is to tie someone's
hands up when they only have one hand?"

Tears of fear and pain filled Jason's eyes as Peters ripped the IV tube out
of his arm, disconnected the other machines, then yanked the boy up, out of
the bed. It was then that Jason saw Rocky, lying still and silent on the
floor in the corner of the room, blood deeping across the floor from
beneath him.

He barely had time to worry about him, though, as he was dragged through
the window and pushed roughly across the alleyway to where the criminals'
car was waiting.

* * *

Donavon and Sarah came back to find neither of the police guards where they
should be, outside the door of Jason's room. The two exchanged worried
looks, and when Donavon tried to open the door, he was startled and
frightened to discover the door was locked from the inside.

"Donavon?" Sarah asked in fright.

"Stand back," he told her. She did, and he lifted his foot and kicked the
door wide open.

"Oh my god..." Sarah whispered as they went in to find the Red Power Ranger
unconscious on the floor, and Jason gone. As Donavon went to the open
window to see if they were in sight, Sarah went to look at the wounded
ranger.

"Donavon, he's been shot!"

Donavon looked back, and strode over. "I'll get a doctor, and then I'm
calling Michael."

Sarah looked torn, but her nursing training would not let her leave a
wounded person. "I'll stay here, with him," she said finally. "Go on,
quickly..."

Donavon ran from the room, leaving his wife alone with the injured ranger.

* * *

Donavon returned less than a minute later with a doctor, and was stunned to
see not the Red Ranger, but young Rocky De Santos lying wounded on the
floor. He looked in shock at his wife, and the woman spoke firmly, keeping
her gaze fixed on the doctor.

"This boy has been shot. The Red Ranger was also injured, but he went after
the men that took Jason."

The doctor nodded. "All right. We'll take care of him, Mrs Scott."

Donavon drew his wife to her feet. "Let's go and find Michael," he said
grimly.

* * *

Once they were out of the room, Donavon stared incredulously at Sarah.
"Rocky De Santos?"

"I took the helmet off to see that he was still breathing," she said
helplessly. "I had to! I don't know what happened. I knocked something and
this coin fell off him from somewhere..." She held up a small gold coin
with the insignia of a Tyrannosaurus on the front. "Suddenly, he wasn't
wearing that uniform anymore. I thought it best to keep the secret."

Donavon nodded. "I agree But if Rocky is the Red Ranger, then I'd love to
know who the other rangers are."

"Not now," Sarah begged. "Donavon, we have to get Jason back..."

He nodded grimly, and quickened his pace.

Angel Grove Police Precinct
"What!" Michael exploded when he heard the news from one of his sergeants.
"Where the hell were the guards? Damn!" He snatched up microphone that was
connected to the precinct's loudspeakers.

"Everyone, listen up and listen hard! I want every single officer not
working on a priority case to report to station car park immediately. Our
two escaped prisoners have just kidnapped Jason Scott from the hospital,
and they shot another teenager in the process. This is code one priority!
Get your asses outside right now!"

Without waiting for a response from the sergeant, Michael grabbed his gun
belt and jacket, and charged out of the office.

* * *

"So what now?"

Peters glanced back at Rufus, who was trying to hold Jason down as the boy
struggled frantically. "I know a building. We'll take him there, and then I
cut the little bastard's throat. Real slow...."

Rufus licked his lips. "You said I could have five minutes. You said I
could!"

"You're one sick puppy, Rufus," Peters said, shaking his head. "The kid
isn't even all that good-looking."

"Hey, I just want five minutes," Rufus said innocently. He slapped Jason
lightly across the face. "Besides, I ain't interested in this part up
here."

Jason stared up at his captors in growing terror. He didn't need to be a
genius to know what was going to happen to him. There would be no false
negotiations this time; Rufus was going to molest... or even rape him, and
then Shotgun would kill him. He ceased his struggles, knowing they would do
him no good. Not while he was confined to such a small space. He would have
to bide his time, wait for an opportune moment, and then act.

He couldn't be frightened of death, now. Whatever happened from that point
on, he had nothing more to lose.

* * *

The rangers arrived at the Command Centre on an urgent summons from Zordon.
The two men had made it undetected into the hospital, had shot Rocky and
taken Jason.

Trini's golden skin turned ashen. "How can you say that?" she whispered,
stricken. "Billy, how could you? Have you forgotten how Jason went
searching for us that time when the two of us got lost in the valley? That
was only two years ago, Billy. He didn't have to do what he did, but he
probably saved our lives by doing it. Don't you care?"

Tears spilled down Billy's cheeks. "What can I do, though?"

"Get on that damned computer," Kim growled, "and find him!"

Billy drew in a calming breath, and went to do just that.

* * *

It was a building scheduled for demolition. An old, crumbling building,
with a shaky foundation and trembling walls and roof. Jason barely had time
to look around as he was shepherded through, and into a smaller office
room, that was barren of furniture, and sporting at least two years' worth
of dust. Peters glared at Rufus threateningly.

Peters slammed the door shut and disappeared from sight. Rufus watched him
go, then turned around and leered at Jason, who lay sprawled helplessly on
the floor.

"Did you hear that? Ten minutes." He approached the boy, starting to
unbuckle his belt as he came closer. Jason watched, his heart pounding hard
in his chest. After all the lessons, all the competitions, every minute of
training and effort he had ever put in to his beloved martial arts.... Now
it was finally going to be put to a real test. Ultimate self defence,
defence of his very life.

Rufus came within reach, and Jason reacted instantly. Twisting a little
onto his side, and ignoring the pain that shot through his injured
shoulder, he lashed out with his left leg, kicking Rufus as hard as he
could in the groin. Rufus went down with a crash, his mouth wide open in a
silent scream of pain and shock.

Jason grabbed the precious seconds, and ripped the tape off his mouth,
following that by working his left wrist free of the tape. For just a split
second, he was grateful of the amputation; it gave him the ability to free
himself quickly.

Rufus had staggered to his feet, and was limping towards Jason, one hand
covering his crotch. Jason propelled himself upwards, and was on his feet a
second later, right fist clenched and ready for a fight.

"Little shit...." Rufus moaned. "Gonna pay...."

"No," Jason whispered, as he circled around the molester. "Not this time.
C'mon, come and get me, you bastard."

Rufus charged at Jason, and the boy reacted on instinct and side- stepped
right out of the way. Rufus shot past him and crashed into the wall,
shattering a pane of glass with his forehead. Jason glanced anxiously at
the door, and moved back, to stand up against the wall on the door side.
Peters must have surely heard that crash....

His concerns were confirmed a moment later when he heard Peters' voice come
from somewhere outside.

"Rufus? Rufus, what the fuck are you doing in there? I told you, I want to
kill the little shit!"

Jason clenched his jaw and his fist as he glanced at Rufus' unconscious
form. He had put Rufus out of action, but he knew Peters would be harder to
take out. He held his breath, waiting for his chance.

The door swung open slowly, but no one came through. Jason stood frozen,
not daring to attack someone whose position he could not see. He heard the
familiar voice curse softly at the sight of Rufus slumped against the far
wall, and heard footsteps move back just a couple of paces.

"Okay, kid. Get your ass out here now, and I promise I'll make it quick."

Jason remained where he was. He could not see Peters, but on the up- side,
nor could Peters see him. If he could just wait long enough for Peters to
get impatient and step into the room....

Jason glanced around instinctively, and his heart very nearly stopped
beating. High up in one corner of the room, was a convex mirror which
clearly showed every aspect of the room. Assuming Peters was in the right
spot... and Jason was sure he was... then the man could see him clearly.

Adrenaline exploded as Jason threw himself to the floor at the same time
that bullets ripped through the thin wall of the office. He threw his arms
over his head, a meager protection, and tried not to scream in fear. The
bullets came lower, and Jason felt one graze across his shoulders, leaving
a burning pain.

Then, as soon as it started, it was over. Jason remained still, hoping he
could fool Peters, at least for a short while, that he was badly wounded.
If only for a few seconds, it would be all he needed to make his move.

* * *

Peters came into the room slowly, and smirked to himself when he saw Jason
was down. The smirk formed a wide grin when he saw the blood across the
boy's back.

"Well," he sneered, "I could let you bleed to death... But that's not my
style. I like to make sure I finish what I start."

He stepped closer, not quite within reach. Jason held his breath, not
daring even to breathe, not wanting to give himself away. This was no game
now, not like the games he had played as a child. If he screwed up, there
would be no second chance.

Jason rolled over, onto his side, cringing at the fiery pain through his
right shoulder. Reaching around as fast as he could, he grabbed the back of
Peters' ankle with his right hand and, holding tightly, slammed his left
arm into Peters' knee cap. Peters went down hard, screaming in pain as his
knee cap broke, and Jason took the chance, scrambling to his feet and
fleeing the room. Peters watched him go, half-blinded by the pain of his
injury. Then, survival instinct took over and he dragged himself up, and
went after his young victim.

* * *

_Which way out?_ Jason had no idea. He had been frightened and disoriented
when they'd dragged him into the building, and they'd taken so many turns
through the disused metal shelving that he'd lost all sense of
direction.

An angry howl split the silence, and Jason hurried himself up, fear gnawing
at him. Peters was coming for him, and if he didn't find the way out
soon....

He shoved the thought away. That was not going to happen.

* * *

"Jason!" Peters roared, fumbling to reload his gun as he limped along. "I'm
coming for you! You aren't getting away from me, you little shit!"

Jason paused, to get his breath back. This guy had been watching too many
Hollywood movies... He didn't bother wasting precious time and energy by
replying, but continued searching desperately for the way out.

"The viewing globe," Tommy said hoarsely. "Quick! Show us where he is!" A
moment past, and then an image formed on the viewing globe, revealing Jason
moving at a painfully slow speed through what looked like some sort of
factory building. He was frighteningly pale, but at the same time looked
determined...

"Can we teleport him here?" Zack asked.

"I am afraid not," Zordon said grimly. "You four must teleport to where
Jason is. Alpha?"

"Making the calculations now, Zordon," Alpha replied as he turned towards a
second panel. "Ready to teleport..."

Zordon immediately activated the teleportation process... at the same
instant that Alpha tripped over a loose cable and fell across the computer
panel, scrambling the teleportation coordinates.

"Oh no!" Alpha wailed. It was too late. The rangers vanished in a flash of
light, bound for an unknown destination.

Silence reigned for several longs, painful seconds, and then Zordon spoke
in a voice that almost trembled.

"May the power protect Jason."

For once, Alpha stayed silent. For once, he had nothing to say.

* * *

Peters, despite his injury, was getting closer. He was running purely on
rage, where Jason had used up his reserve energy back in the office. He was
hurting everywhere, and was having a lot of trouble breathing properly. He
stopped again, for the third time, to even out his breathing, and tried
desperately to ease the spinning sensation in his head.

Peters came literally out of nowhere, hatred and fury etched onto his face.
Jason had less than a second to react, and he spun out of the way, barely
missing being clouted by the handle of Peters' gun.

"Come here..." Peters snarled, diving at Jason, and just missing him once
more. Jason glanced behind him, and saw they were emerging into a large,
open area. Perfect, Jason thought dimly, for fighting conditions....

Not daring to turn his back on Peters for a second, he scooted backwards,
into the open and away from the dangerous shelving. Peters approached
slowly, cocking the gun in his hand.

He shot forward, towards Peters and leapt into the air, his foot connecting
with Peters' right wrist. In order to save his wrist from being broken,
Peters let go of the gun, and it flew through the air, disappearing from
sight into the shadows.

"Bastard of a kid..." Peters swore as he rubbed his wrist. "You want a
fight? You've got one."

He pulled out his knife, and opened the blade, waving it threateningly in
the air. "Come and get some of this, then. C'mon...."

Jason did not. The kick had worked once; he was not foolish enough to try
the same thing again. Peters glared at him.

"What, you more scared of a knife than you are of a gun? C'mon, Jason,
don't be a coward. Come and get me."

Jason still made no move to attack. He would not attack, and dishonour his
training. Snarling angrily, and finally losing his patience, Peters
launched himself at Jason. It was what the boy had been waiting for, and,
as the knife came down, he threw his left arm up and blocked the attack,
while slamming his right fist into Peters' midsection, winding him.

Gasping for air, Peters abandoned the knife and reached out, grabbing a
fistful of Jason's shirt. Jason slammed his left arm down over Peters' arm,
holding him, then drove his right forearm into Peters' nose, effectively
breaking it. Then, before Peters could recover, Jason grabbed the side of
the man's neck and, with considerable force, kicked his left leg as hard as
he could, bringing the man to the floor with a crash.

Jason stood back, careful to move around behind Peters' head and out of
reach.

"You got me once... But nobody gets the edge over me twice."

Shaking his head in disgust, he turned and started to walk away. Peters
looked away for a moment, then saw it. His gun, lying just beyond reach
across the floor. Heart beating hard, Peters rolled across and snatched it
up, then dragged himself to his feet. He lifted the gun, and released the
safety catch...

* * *

Jason heard the click of the safety being released on the gun, and it
registered instantly what was going on. He didn't stop to think, knew he
didn't have the time. Reacting purely on instinct refined by years of
discipline and training, Jason launched himself into the air, in a
much-practised ninety degree roundhouse kick. As he turned, he saw the gun,
aiming right at his skull. He saw straight down the black barrel of the
weapon, saw his own death waiting there to claim him.

Then, his foot connected with Peters' skull. There was a dull cracking
sound that would later haunt Jason in his nightmares, and Peters' head
rocked violently to one side. The gun fired, and the bullet skimmed past
Jason, missing him by less than an inch. A moment later, the gun fell
harmlessly to the concrete ground, and Peters went down beside it.

Jason landed, shocks of pain going unnoticed through his feet. For several
long seconds he stood frozen, not entirely sure what had just happened.
Then, gradually, he looked down and his blurred gaze focused on Peters,
lying still and silent, blood trickling out of his mouth and his ear. The
man's eyes were wide open, and glazed over in a dead stare.

The teen stumbled backwards, feeling nauseous as realisation struck him
that Peters was dead. The man who had promised to kill him, had been killed
himself.

Dimly, he realised that right then, he didn't care. All that he knew was
that he was safe, finally. Only Rufus remained, and Rufus was in the
office, his head virtually split open. He wouldn't be going anywhere fast,
that was certain.

Exhaustion hit, and Jason sat down on the concrete floor, suddenly too
tired be bothered looking for the way out. Tired, sick and overcome with
relief, Jason buried his face in his arms, and waited for help to come.

Angel Grove Memorial Hospital
Jason rested peacefully, all his injuries seen to, and dosed up on enough
drugs to knock him out for at least twenty-four hours. The Scotts stayed by
his side, refusing to leave despite suggestions that they go home to rest.
Rocky had also been placed in the same room as Jason. The doctors had
predicted a full recovery from the gunshot wound, although he would be in
hospital for at least the following week.

At first, Mrs De Santos had been nearly hysterical, and it had taken a
great deal of effort to settle her down. Not that they could blame her, of
course. Getting shot was nothing like falling and breaking an arm....

Things had settled down now, though, and all adults were waiting in quiet,
patient silence for their sons to recover.

The rescue had been a massive effort on the part of the Angel Grove police.
Needless to say they had been somewhat humiliated to finally locate Jason,
only to discover he had dealt with his two kidnappers already. The boy had
been notably distraught, yet somber and quiet.

Upon being found by the police, his first questions were about Rocky. He
knew Peters was dead; he had asked in a trembling voice if he would be
arrested because of it.

Now, Michael leaned in the doorway of the hospital room, watching in
silence. After everything that had happened, it was almost hard to believe
that the drama was finally over. The cause of Peters' death had been
recorded by the coroner as an act of self defence, his neck having been
broken cleanly, and no other serious injuries had been sustained. Though
the case was still required to go to the D.A., Michael had no doubt that it
would proceed no further. Considering what Jason had already been through,
it would be unnecessarily cruel to take it further.

He straightened up as Donavon joined him, and the two men stepped outside.
"Thank God it's over," Donavon whispered.

"No," Michael replied softly. "No charges will be laid by the police. We
still have to wait for what the D.A. has to say about it, but I doubt he'll
want to take it any further, either. Jason was acting in self defense. We
all know he would have been the dead one, if he hadn't done something about
it. The fact that those bastards shot Rocky De Santos was proof that Jason
was in real danger of his life. He had every right to do what he did."

A day later...
"This would almost be cool," Rocky said thoughtfully, "if it didn't hurt so
much."

Jason spared him a wondering look. "You mean being shot?"

"Yeah. It's really great! All I have to do is moan a bit when one of those
nurses comes in, and they're all over me! I've never had so much attention
before...."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Enjoy it while you can. Pretty soon you'll go back
to being just the plain old Red Ranger, fighting against the forces of evil
for the sake of your planet..."

Rocky sat up slowly. "Hang on, man I thought we'd agreed I was only a temp.
You'll be out of here the same time as me, and you'll probably be more up
to a fight."

Jason looked down to where his left hand used to be. "Oh, sure. How the
hell do I fight putties with only one hand? Goldar would have a field day
with me!"

"I don't know about that. You did a damned good job protecting yourself
against those bastards that took you. You managed then with only one hand,
didn't you?"

"Yeah," Jason conceded reluctantly. "I guess, but..."

"But what?"

"Zordon won't want me on the team like this. He'll just say that I'd hold
everyone else back."

"If that's what he thinks, then the whole thing's a crock," Rocky snapped.
"Being a ranger is more than just being physically intact. You've already
proved you can defend yourself with only one hand, without any powers. I'd
like to see you go kick some putty ass with the powers. I mean, look at
what you did to Peters...."

Jason paled slightly and sank down in the bed. He'd been trying to forget
that, and Rocky had not done him any favours by reminding him.

Rocky kicked himself in the proverbial. "Aw, man, I'm sorry. I shouldn't
have said that."

"I never meant to kill him," Jason whispered, tears filling his eyes as the
memory of Peters' death came back to him. "It wasn't supposed to happen
like that!"

Rocky tried once more to offer some comfort, but Jason turned away,
refusing to listen.

Trini looked uncomfortable and nervous, two emotions that Kim could not
recall seeing before in her friend. "After Jason was rescued the first
time, I talked to him and I told him that I didn't really want a
relationship of any sort with anyone. I told him I'd broken up with
Richie..." Trini sighed. "He was so sweet about it. Any other guy probably
would have asked straight out for a date but Jason said he was sorry and
that he hadn't wanted us to break up. I'd sort of reassured myself that
everything was okay. Then, we got called to the Power Chamber and Zordon
told us they'd kidnapped Jason from the hospital. Kim, I was so scared..."
Trini whispered, tears overflowing down her cheeks. "When Billy virtually
said we might as well not bother, that they were going to kill Jason... I
haven't felt that scared since Jason was trapped by Rita that time in the
Dimension of Darkness."

Kimberly nodded seriously. "I know what you mean. We were in the Command
Centre, not knowing where he was, or what was happening to him... I was
scared, too. Trini, what are you trying to say?"

Trini wrung her hands nervously. "I don't know. Ever since Jason told me
how he felt I've been telling myself that I didn't feel the same way. Even
after breaking up with Richie, I told myself that I didn't love him. Not
like that. Now, I'm not so sure. Kim, you love Tommy, don't you?"

Kim felt suddenly helpless. "Well, I guess so. It's hard to define, Trini.
I know I care about Tommy a lot. I guess... The only way you're going to
know is if you take a chance."

"I'm scared," Trini confessed. "Kim, I don't want to wreck our friendship.
What if it doesn't work out?"

"It's your decision," Kim told her quietly. "You either do, or you don't. I
can't tell you what to do."

Trini pulled a face. "You were happy enough to have a hand in getting me
together with Richie."

"And look at how that turned out!" Kim said with a laugh. "You and Jason
are two of my best friends. I've already stuck my nose in your love lives
once, and it's gotten Jason into trouble. I'm not gonna do it again.
Whatever you do, you're on your own."

Trini sighed heavily. "I'm on my own...."

Angel Grove Memorial Hospital
Trini ventured into the room to find Jason asleep and Rocky watching the
television. He looked over and grinned when he saw her.

"Hey, Trini. Come to visit a sick teammate?"

Trini smile wryly at him. "Sort of. I came to see Jason."

All jokes died on Rocky's tongue, and he sat back a little. "I think I
upset him earlier. We were arguing over who was gonna continue on as the
Red Ranger, and I said Jase had shown he was still capable of a good fight
with the way he'd taken care of those two goons. He got upset when I
mentioned the one that got killed."

Trini came all the way into the room. "I'm not surprised. Jason was taught
to always avoid hurting people if he could, and absolutely never aim to
kill. It must be really torturing him that he killed that man."

"He didn't have a choice!" Rocky objected. "If he didn't, then he would
have been dead!"

"We can look at it like that," Trini said softly, "but Jason was the only
one there. Only he knows whether he could have avoided killing him or
not."

Rocky grunted. "I still think he did the right thing. And now, no one else
will ever be hurt by that guy."

Trini didn't bother arguing anymore. Rocky seemed to have been taught a
different way than she and Jason had been. Turning away, she went over to
Jason's side, and took a moment to look down at his face. He was peaceful
right then, but that peace would no longer be there once he woke up. She
shut her eyes for a moment, fighting the grief. Nearly five years ago, they
had attended a martial arts exhibition, and had taken some time out to
listen to an elderly man who had been teaching martial arts for many
years.

Once you used the martial arts to kill, he had said in a grave voice, it
was a very difficult thing to go back. To take the life of another was the
epitome of what martial arts should never be used for....

Trini felt tears in her eyes as she started to understand the anguish Jason
had to be suffering. She opened her eyes, and started a little when she
realised he was awake, and watching her.

"Hey," she said nervously.

Jason managed a weak smile, but it was only a shadow of the real thing.
"Hey yourself. What's wrong?"

Trini shook her head, quickly wiping her eyes. "Nothing. I just had some
dust in my eyes."

"Sure," Jason retorted sceptically.

Trini hesitated, then glanced back at Rocky. "Um... Would you mind if we
had a little privacy?"

Rocky shrugged. "I don't mind, but I'm not exactly mobile."

"Just pull the curtain," Jason suggested.

Trini pulled the curtain all the way around the bed. "It's not soundproof,"
Trini said with a grimace.

Trini picked nervously at the blanket. "I've been thinking a lot. We nearly
lost you twice. The first time was scary enough, but the second time.... I
don't know what we would have done if we'd lost you."

Jason watched her wordlessly, waiting patiently to see where she was going
with it. Trini faltered for just a moment, frightened that things would
suddenly be reversed; that she would say she was ready for a relationship
and that Jason would reject her.

Sensing her conflict, Jason reached across and grasped her hand with his
own. "Take your time."

Trini squeezed his hand lightly. "I said before that I didn't want a
relationship with anyone...."

Jason stared at her wordlessly, and she couldn't help but notice a faint
spark of light in his eyes. Was it hope? She gained courage, and went
on.

"I don't know if it'd work but I'm willing to try. I'm not saying this
because I feel sorry for you, or anything. I mean, I do, but that's not it.
That second time, when we got called to the Command Centre, when Zordon
told us what had happened, and then when the teleportation got screwed
up.... I wanted to just sit down and cry, because I thought that was it. I
thought I wasn't ever going to see you again... Just thinking that made me
sick to my stomach. I can't explain it, Jason. How I feel right now is
beyond what I can describe."

She trailed off, and finally dared to look up at him. Tears were trickling
down his cheeks, and he held her hand firmly, pushing himself up a little
at the same time. "Maybe it's love.... Maybe it isn't... But if you're
willing to try, then I am, too. I love you, Trini. I won't ever hurt you, I
promise."

Trini leaned forward and threw her arms around him in a close embrace. "I
really care about you a lot, Jase. I hope that eventually I'll be able to
say I love you as well."

Jason drew back from her a little, staring at her with a loving gaze. He
wanted to kiss her badly, but dared not take the chance for fear of
upsetting her.

She saw the longing in his eyes, though, and smiled. "It's okay. Go ahead."

Jason hesitated, though, and he flushed red with embarrassment.

Trini's forehead creased with worry. "What is it?"

Jason glanced past her, to the curtain, beyond which Rocky lay. Trini
understood his concern, and glance out to see just what the current Red
Ranger was doing.

"He's listening to headphones," she told him a moment later.

Jason looked relieved. "Good."

"All right. What's wrong, then?"

Jason looked painfully nervous. "I don't know how to."

"How to what? Kiss?"

Jason shook his head quickly, his cheeks burning with humiliation. "No.
I've never had a girlfriend before I've never kissed a girl before. I don't
know how to do it."

Trini would have laughed, but for it being Jason. Instead, she sat on the
edge of the bed, and lightly stroked his cheek. "It's easy. Just relax.
Shut your eyes."

She waited until he'd shut his eyes, then reached up and gently brushed her
thumbs against his lips, drawing open his mouth just a little. Then, she
leaned forward and pressed her lips lightly to his. Jason stiffened for
just a bare instant, then felt something akin to an electric shock rocket
through him. He relaxed and allowed his mouth to open a little more,
feeling excitement as her tongue slipped through to lightly caress his. He
responded finally, taking his cue from Trini and doing the same.

Jason smiled sheepishly, his cheeks red with embarrassment. Trini
hesitated, then lay down carefully beside him, resting her head on his
shoulder.

"Everything will be all right, Jason." She lightly stroke his left wrist,
down to the bandaged stump. "Even this. Don't be ashamed about losing a
hand. You still have your dignity and honour."

The embarrassment faded to make way for pain. "Honour?" he echoed bitterly.
"I lost my honour when I killed him."

"No, I don't think so," Trini argued softly. "It was self defense, Jason.
That's the bottom line of what karate is about. Those men were going to
kill you, and I know you wouldn't have put up a fight like that unless you
were in real danger."

Jason stared up at the white-washed ceiling. "It's not as simple as that,
Trini."

"I know, but it's a start. And you have to start somewhere. I'll help you.
Everyone will. Just let us, okay?"

Jason looked around, at her delicate face right next to his, her long black
hair gently brushing against his cheek. He finally had what he wanted, but
what he'd had to go through to get it... He leaned over and kissed her
lightly on the mouth. "I'll try. I promise."

Trini smiled, and settled down next to him on the bed in contented silence.